Suddenly GONE
by Walker Witch
Summary: Daryl Dixon is barely existing. His brother is making his life miserable and he has no place to live except in his old blue pickup truck. He has a part-time job that he enjoys, but it's only a few days week and that's not enough. When he gets a text message from his brother it changes his life forever. Story starts prior to the apocalypse.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

 **2009**

"Sumbitch!" Daryl cursed loudly as the wrench in his hand slipped and hit him in the head. He rolled out from under the truck he was working under and sat up rubbing his forehead.

"Problem Dixon?" asked Mack, his boss. Daryl had been working part-time at the garage for about three weeks. Mack couldn't afford to hire anyone full-time and Daryl was desperate for a job so he took whatever hours Mack could give him.

Mack was a wiry old grease monkey, with his thinning gray hair tied back into a ponytail. He knew everything there was to know about anything that had a motor. Daryl had stumbled upon this rundown garage when he had been out searching for work. His job interview was done under the hood of an old Pontiac Trans Am that wasn't running. Mack simply told him to figure out what was wrong and fix it. Two hours later Daryl had the job.

"Yeah, every fuckin' screw on this piece of shit Ford is rusted. Gonna need a blow torch to get the damn exhaust off," he told him.

Mack looked over at his part-time mechanic," Just don't blow us up," he said in his laid back manner.

"Try not to," Daryl told him. He liked working at Mack's. Neither of them were big talkers, so the quiet suited them both just fine. Mack treated him fairly and also taught him stuff that he didn't know, plus he let him work on his old pickup in his spare time. Now if he could only keep this job.

He got up and walked over to the sink and looked in the dirty mirror. That wretch had hit him good; a knot was already forming on his forehead. Just as he was turning back to give that screw another shot, he felt his cell phone vibrate in his pants. Daryl wiped his hands on a rag he had hanging out of his back pocket and checked his phone. It was a text from his brother, Merle.

 _ **Found us a place at Lakeview Trailer Park in Riverside. # 14** **.**_

Daryl texted back, _**Better not be a dump like last time. C U after work**._

They had been looking for a place to live after getting thrown out of the last apartment they rented. Daryl had been living out of the back of his truck for the last four days and it was getting old…really old. Merle simply couldn't get along with anyone. He either argued and picked fights or sexually harassed the women so they tended to get kicked out a lot. Daryl was so tired of Merle being a dick all the time. If he could just keep his mouth shut once in a while, or act like a normal person, they may stand a chance of staying somewhere more than a few months.

Daryl hated moving around all the time, but he stayed with his brother because he didn't have any other choice. Merle was all he had for family and you didn't turn your back in family, no matter how much of a jackass they were. However, his father was a completely different story. Daryl had left home, or the dump that he had been living in with his old man at sixteen and never looked back. The abuse he had received at the hands of his father was unforgivable. He hoped the drunken bastard was dead.

Now a little over twenty years later, Daryl was still stuck with Merle. His brother had cost him anyone that he ever got friendly with. No one wanted to put up with Merle as he made all their lives miserable. Daryl had no idea why Meryl said the crazy ass shit he did. It made him wonder if Merle was jealous that he other people in his life at times, which was why his behavior would eventually drive everyone away. He turned Daryl into the loner he was.

He grabbed a spray can of lubricant before heading back under the truck he was working on. He was hoping that would help loosen up the rusted screws holding the old exhaust system on. Daryl slid back under the truck and tried again.

Mack looked over towards the pickup that Daryl was working on. His booted feet stuck out the end as he fought to get the exhaust off. Daryl was a good worker. He had seen his fair share over the years, some good, some not so good. Most had stories and pasts that they kept hidden and Daryl was no different, but he liked the guy. He arrived on time for the most part, he knew his way around a car or truck and never caused any problems. Mack was smart enough not to blame Daryl for having a jerk of a brother. He had met Merle a few times when he stopped by the garage, usually to ask Daryl for money. He knew you couldn't choose your family and he didn't hold it against him.

The work day was finally coming to an end. Daryl had changed out that exhaust he was having a problem with, did two oil changes and replaced a starter. He was washing up at the sink when Mack approached him.

"Dixon, wondering if you could help me out with sumthin'?"

"What you need, Mack?"

Mack started to pull a set of keys out of his worn greasy pants pocket. "Gonna go fishin' next week. Need you to run the place for me. Can ya do that?" It wasn't often that he let someone do this, but even after only a few weeks he knew he could trust Daryl.

Daryl was surprised by Mack's request, but he didn't let on. He still figured he was learning the ropes, but he was happy that Mack had asked him. He liked the old guy and he silently vowed to not let him down. "Yeah, sure I can. Open at eight and close at five. I know how to order parts, what about money?"

They went over how Daryl was to handle the payments, plus a few other items that he hadn't thought of. "You good?" asked Mack. Daryl nodded that he was. " 'kay then, here are the keys for the shop. Just make sure its standing when I get back."

The keys and the responsibility that they came with were dropped into Daryl's capable hands. He was surprised how good having this responsibility made him feel. There was no way in hell he was going to let Merle know that Mack was gone for the week. That had disaster written all over it.

Daryl got into his ancient blue Ford F-250 pickup, lit up a cigarette and headed to find the trailer park and Merle. He thought he had seen it off of East Winston Street so he headed in that direction. Sure enough a couple miles down he saw the sign for the trailer park and turned in. "Sign looked decent," he thought.

The trailer park was set back off the road and it surprised Daryl that it really looked nice. "How the fuck did Merle get us a trailer here?" he wondered. He had only given him five hundred dollars and he had no idea how much if any money Merle had. How the hell could they afford this? The trailers were all in good conditions, garbage was not all over the place, and it actually looked like people wanted to live there.

Daryl finally found number fourteen and knew it was the right one as Merle's motorcycle was parked outside of it. He was still highly suspicious. He parked the pickup and got out. Merle met him at the door.

" 'bout time you got here little brother. C'mon in and check out our luxurious accommodations," Merle told him with a smirk.

Daryl walked inside and slowly took everything in. It surprised him. It was a really nice completely furnished trailer. It was the best place they lived in years, maybe ever and there was no way they could afford this.

"What did you do?" accused Daryl.

"What do you mean? This is legit," Merle told him.

"There ain't no way you got this with the five bills I gave you. Deposit and first month, must be triple that…easy. So, what did…you…do?" Daryl asked again.

Merle just gave him that big grin of his. "You need to trust me more little brother." Daryl just stared at Merle. "Okay, I got myself a job."

Daryl laughed. "Good one. Try again."

"It hurts that you don't trust me. Have I ever lied to you?"

"Every chance you get," Daryl told him. "For the last time, how the fuck did you afford this?"

Merle sat down on the sofa and crossed his feet on the coffee table. "I told you I got a job. Right here in fact. You are looking at the new maintenance man for Riverside Trailer Park."

"You don't fix shit and you know it. I do and I already got myself a job." Daryl sat down across from Merle. His brother did nothing but complicate his life. Was this job for real? "What's this job that you are supposed to be doing?"

"Fix broken shit, keep it clean…you know shit like that. In return we get half off on rent and no security. This place will cost us only four hundred a month. How about that?" Merle knew the deal was a good one and since Daryl was good at fixing most anything, he figured he would luck out with not having to do much. Daryl only worked part-time at that garage anyway. He crossed his hands behind his head and grinned at Daryl.

If Merle was telling the truth with the job and the rent, it was a really good deal. Even if he did have to help out some a nice place like this for four hundred a month was cheap. "How did you get this job?"

"Met a broad at The Roadhouse and after I showed her a real good time the other night in her trailer here she mentioned that they were looking for a new guy to do maintenance. She put in a good word and here we are." Merle watched Daryl as his eyes looked around the place. "So where's my thank you?"

"In the bed of my truck where I've been sleeping the last four nights because of you." Daryl got up to explore the trailer. First thing he noticed was how clean everything was, but since Merle was a slob, he knew that wasn't going last long. There was the living room that Merle was reclined in, a decent size kitchen for a trailer, but neither of them really cooked and then he headed down the hall. There he found a bathroom and two bedrooms. Merle had his stuff all over the bigger of the two rooms, so Daryl knew by default he had the smaller one. He didn't mind. Having a room to himself was good enough, he didn't care how big it was. Daryl walked back to the living room. "Let's try to keep this nice for a change, and where's the rest of my money?"

"What money?" Merle asked knowing exactly what Daryl meant.

"I gave you five hundred and rent was four, where's the other hundred I gave you?"

"Went to turning on the cable, food and beer," Merle told him.

Daryl walked over to the refrigerator and pulled it open. He saw plenty of beer, but no food. "Where's the food, I'm hungry?"

Merle tried to look innocent. "Guess I ate it all before you got here."

"Figures. I'll be back." Daryl left the trailer pissed. Merle did good with the trailer, he'd give him that, but he blew his hard earned hundred bucks on beer and god knows what else. He made a vow not to give him any extra money…again.

"Pick me up sumthin', " Merle called out.

Daryl's only response was "Fuck you." He climbed into his truck, backed out and started back towards town to find food. On his way out of the trailer park, he passed an older model black Honda Civic coming in. The woman driving the car looked like the typical perfect girl next door type, and when their eyes met and she smiled at him, he about crashed the truck into a tree. She had his heart racing and he felt like he had been shocked.

When he got to the stop sign at the main road, he stopped the truck and rested his forehead on the steering wheel. "What the hell happened?" he said to himself. He had never reacted to a woman that way before. Did she live there or was she just visiting? Should he turn around and look for her or would she tell him to fuck off? But she smiled at him, right? That was good, wasn't it? Utterly confused on what to do, Daryl took the safe way and kept heading into town for dinner. The more he thought about it, the more he was convinced that he was wrong. Girls like her, never smiled at guys like him.

Never.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Daryl hit the first drive thru he found and ordered enough food for two. He was always a sucker when it came to his brother. He knew he was going to have to hide the money he had gotten from Mack for working that week or Merle would spend it. He would have to explore his room a little further to find a good hiding spot.

Daryl pulled back into the park and when he got back to their trailer he almost crashed his truck for the second time that day. The black Honda was parked in the spot that belonged to the trailer next them. When he left that spot was empty. He was next door neighbors with the beautiful girl in the car. He sent up a silent prayer that she was single and most of all that Merle would ignore her, which would be absolutely impossible.

He got out of the truck slowly trying to not look like he was checking out the other trailer, when he most certainly was. He couldn't see anyone in it, but he could see that there was a light on inside that wasn't there before. Sooner or later he knew their paths had to cross and hoped he would not make a fool of himself.

In the bed of the pickup, Daryl had stored his belongings under a tarp. For now he just grabbed the food and his crossbow and brought them inside. The crossbow was his most prized possession. He would grab the rest after he ate.

Merle was watching the television with his feet up on the coffee table when Daryl walked back into the trailer. He put his crossbow in his room, before finally doling out the fast food he had gotten for dinner. He took out two burgers and fries out of the bag and put them on a small kitchen table before he dropped the bag in Merle's lap.

"Knew you wouldn't forget me, little brother."

Daryl grabbed a beer out of the fridge and sat at the table. "If you don't stop with the little brother shit I fucking will forget." He blocked out Merle's response and concentrated on eating his dinner. After drenching his fries in ketchup from those little packets, he took his time eating all the while keeping an eye on the trailer next door.

When the outside light that belonged to the trailer next door switched on, it instantly caught his attention. He saw the front door swing open and the woman stepped outside. Daryl quickly got up, mumbled he was going get his stuff and went out to his truck leaving his half eaten food on the table.

He noticed she had the trunk up, so it gave him time to flip back the tarp covering his meager belongings. He was pulling his two duffle bags out of the bed when he heard the trunk slam shut. He looked up and she was smiling at him.

"Hi new neighbor," she called out.

"Hey," was all he said back. He was having trouble putting a sentence together. She definitely had that hot girl next door look going for her. For some reason he thought she had this innocent quality about her when her clothes said the opposite. It was still light enough to see that her green eyes sparkled like the rhinestones on her cowboy boots. Her brown hair was done up all wavy and hung half way down the back of her tight black t-shirt that showed her large tits. He couldn't read the writing on it, but that wasn't important when he saw miles of leg under a very short black shirt. Somehow he knew that this just wasn't her.

"I'm Emma…Emma Raines . Welcome to the neighborhood."

"Daryl…ah, Dixon. Daryl Dixon…umm… just moved in with my brother," he said stumbling over his words.

"Nice to meet ya. Sorry, I'm late for work. Gotta run," Emma told him as she got into the car. She backed out and was gone in a flash leaving Daryl staring at her tail lights.

Daryl just stood there for a minute watching the car vanish down the road. "Emma…her name is Emma," he said to himself. She was pretty with a sweet innocence air about her, which was typically not the type of woman he went for. Cheap and easy was the best for him, they didn't expect anything out of him. The clothes told a different story, but something didn't make sense to him. Even though their encounter was extremely brief, Daryl just got that feeling about her. She was a nice girl and nice girls usually didn't go for Dixons.

Maybe it was the way she kept pulling down the short skirt that he knew this wasn't her typically dress. He figured he had plenty of time to get to know her since they were next door neighbors. Hopefully, he could keep Merle from scaring her off. That was going to be the hard part. For the millionth time Daryl cursed the world for giving him a brother like Merle. Nothing about his family was normal and that just sucked.

Daryl took another bag out of the back of the pickup and carried it inside along with the two duffels he already had removed. He dumped them on the floor of his room and went outside for another load. He had his sleeping bag, the guns he used to hunt with and a few odds and ends left to bring in. Once everything was stored in his room, he went back and finished eating his now cold dinner.

Emma sat waiting for the traffic to slow down so she could pull out of the trailer park and head to work. Her new neighbor was kind of cute. Actually the more she thought about it the more she liked him. He had deep brooding eyes and that bad boy appeal that unfortunately had always attracted her, but she had enough of those types of guys in her life to swear them off. Daryl would be her cute next door neighbor and that was it.

The last person that lived in the maintenance trailer was an older guy with a huge beer belly and he was always watching her, so she had to keep her curtains closed all the time. Daryl was a huge improvement on that or at least she hoped he would be. Their quick hello showed her nothing except that he may be on the shy side since he stumbled over his hello to her.

Emma hated meeting people in her uniform for the bar she worked in a few nights a week. The Devil's Brew made her wear a skin tight t-shirt that showed off her breasts, which she preferred to keep under loose tops and the skirt was way too short. The only good thing about it was that the job brought in good tips for the couple nights a week that she worked there. She much preferred her waitress uniform that she wore at the Parkview Diner where she worked during the day. Even though it was a horrible shade of bright pink and white, at least it covered everything.

Working both jobs enabled her to afford the trailer, keep her car repaired and still be able to put a few dollars away each week. Having that cushion in the bank gave her a sense of security that she had lacked her whole life. Emma had grown up in the foster care system moving from family to family. Just when she would start settle in, she would be whisked off to a new family, with new rules and her life would be turned upside down again.

When she aged out of the system at eighteen, she was thrust out into the real world completely on her own. Years of barely making it and living in one horrible place after another, gave her the determination to do better. Continuing her education was never an option, as she never had the time or money to do so. Emma just worked as hard as she could to survive. Ten years later she had a decent place to live and a few dollars in the bank.

Tonight she was looking forward to being able to add more money to her savings account. She hadn't been scheduled for a shift tonight, but a cocktail waitress had called out and the manager called her to see if she would cover. Friday nights were always good tip nights so she jumped at the chance.

Emma pulled up to 'The Brew' as the locals called it and parked off to the side. She locked her purse in the trunk, simply tucking her lipstick in her pocket and headed in for a long night of serving beer and dodging unwanted hands.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Daryl woke up the next morning and glanced over at the clock next to his bed. It was almost seven thirty. He typically didn't work weekends as Mack only did emergency repairs on Saturdays. With Mack gone the garage would be closed.

He lit a cigarette while he figured out what he was going to do that day. Maybe he'd go in and work on his truck he thought. He didn't have any plans and he wasn't in the mood to listen to Merle all day, so going in was looking like a good idea. He ran his fingers through his short brown hair trying to decide what to do, seeing the keys for the shop on the dresser decided for him.

He walked across the hall to take a quick shower and could hear Merle snoring away in his room. He could leave without having to answer a bunch of questions on where he was going. The less Merle knew the better.

Daryl quietly closed the trailer door behind him and locked it. He made sure that Merle gave him a set is keys before he went to bed. His eyes immediately went to the parking spot next door. The black Honda was there. Daryl took a second to look over Emma's trailer. Unlike theirs it has a small wooden front porch that had two chairs on it. She also had flowers planted around the base and a few wind chimes hanging. It was definitely a woman's home. No guy would ever plant flowers or hang the chimes, at least not any that he knew.

Daryl backed the truck out of the small drive and headed off to the shop. Now that he knew where he was going, it only took him about twenty minutes to get there. He parked outside one of the bay doors, went in and unlocked the shop. He was about to press the automatic door opener when he looked around. The shop could use a good sweeping he thought. In fact it could use a thorough cleaning.

Working on the truck was automatically put on the back burner as Daryl decided to use his time to clean up the garage. He spent the next few hours restocking supplies, organizing shelves and putting tools back where they belong. Then he washed down several of the larger machines they had and then stood back looking at his progress. It made a difference and that made him feel good.

Daryl grabbed the big push broom they had and gave the floor a good sweeping. The final touch was that he washed the windows of the bay doors, the regular main door and the windows in the office, both inside and out.

It was mid-afternoon by the time he was done. He stood outside admiring the job he had done on the windows, when a car pulled up. There was steam coming out from under the hood. An older woman got out wringing her hands.

"I think I have a problem, can you look at it for me?" she asked him.

Daryl knew that the garage wasn't really open, but he couldn't turn her away.

"Sure Ma'am. I'll pop the hood and take a look. I'll get a chair for you to sit in while you wait," he told her.

"Oh thank you young man. What is your name?"

Daryl smiled at the elderly woman. No one had called him a young man in a long time. "Name's Daryl, Ma'am. Is there anything in the car that you need while I look at it?"

She had her oversized purse clutched in her hands. "I'll get my knitting is in the backseat, then you can show me where to wait," she said. "Oh and I'm Gladys Johnson."

"I'll get this fixed up right away Mrs. Johnson. I'll get a chair out of the office and you can sit off to the side." Women were a rarity around the garage so they really didn't have a place for customers to wait. The guys just hung out and talked to Mack. Maybe he'd suggest that , it may bring in more business.

He jogged inside and wiped down the cleanest chair he could find and set it up for his new customer. "You can wait right here, Mrs. Johnson," he showed her.

"Just call me Gladys, Daryl. Doesn't make me feel so old," she told him with a wink.

"You got it Gladys," he said with a chuckle.

Daryl opened the bay door before heading to the car. Gladys had a five or six year old Buick. He opened the hood of the car and started to checkout hoses, the radiator and anything that could have caused the steam. It didn't take him long to find a cracked radiator hose. He'd replace that, check the fluid and see if he saw anything else. He walked back into the shop to get a new hose and her heard Gladys on the phone.

He thought it was funny that a woman of her age used a cell phone. While checking the shelves for the right size hose he accidently eavesdropped on her call. She was telling someone that she couldn't meet up with them because of her car. Then she said she hoped it wouldn't cost more than forty dollars as that's all she had until social security check came in next week.

While Daryl worked to replace the hose, he knew normally this was a sixty to one hundred dollar job and depending on what else he found it could go higher. What was he going to do?

Forty minutes later the job was done. It only needed the hose and coolant to replace what was lost. He also had a plan. Daryl the hood of the car and headed over to where Gladys was sitting. Her knitting needles where clinking non-stop as her fingers worked the yarn, yet she never looked down at them once.

"Is it fixed?" she asked him.

"She's all set Gladys. It was just a hose."

"How much do I owe you, Daryl?'

"Just twenty-five dollars," he told her.

Gladys looked at him suspiciously, "Are you sure, that seems awfully cheap?"

"Yep. That's it. Today's the last day of our fifty percent off sale," he lied.

"Oh, that makes sense then," she said with a smile. Gladys opened her large purse and rummage through until she came up with a wrinkled twenty dollar bill, four singles and change. She handed that to Daryl and patted his hand. "You're a good boy Daryl."

It felt good to help out this woman and it made his whole day worthwhile even though it was going to cost him twenty dollars to cover the rest of the cost for parts. "Thanks Gladys. You take it easy now, no speeding."

"They'll have to catch me first," she laughed. Daryl carried her knitting to the car for her and placed it in the back seat. Gladys got in the car, started it up and drove off waving goodbye. Daryl watched her blow through a red light and hoped she was going to make it home without killing anyone.

This was a good day for him. The shop looked clean and he helped out a woman who could have easily been his grandmother, if he had one, which he didn't. It was time to close up the shop and head home.

On the way home he picked up a pizza for dinner and six pack of beer. Tonight was a good night as any to get drunk and with additional the beer that Merle had in the fridge that was going to be a really good start.

* * *

A/N - Will post another chapter later after that I will stick to my normal posting schedule of Sunday, Tuesday and Thursdays one chapter.

Thanks Everyone

WW


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Daryl woke up early Monday morning still slightly hung over from the weekend. He had such a good day on Saturday that he carried it over through drinking all weekend with Merle and a couple of Merle's buddies. They even had to make two additional runs for beer when they ran out.

The clock next to the bed said it was almost six thirty. Even though the garage didn't open until eight, Daryl wanted to get there early. He groaned as he sat on the edge of the bed with his head pounding. It had been a while since he had gotten that drunk. Paying the price the next day always made him wonder why he did it.

He stood under the shower for a good fifteen minutes just letting the hot water run over his body. He had a lot of responsibility on his shoulders this week and he could not screw up the first day. Once he towel dried and combed his hair, he got dressed and was ready to head out the door a few minutes before seven.

Daryl locked the trailer door behind him and headed towards his truck. He automatically looked over to see if Emma's car was there and it was with Emma standing beside it looking at a flat tire.

"Need help?" he automatically offered.

"Oh thank God. Yes I do," Emma said relieved. "I have to be at work in a few minutes and I think my spare is flat too. I was trying to figure out what to do."

This was perfect for Daryl. This was a great way to get to know her better and fixing this was what he did. "Let me check it and we'll figure sumthin' out." The front tire was definitely flat, so he went around the back of the car and look at her spare. Just by looking at it he knew it was soft without even touching it. The perfect plan popped into his head.

"The spare's flat too," he told her. Emma's face fell. "Got an idea. I can drop you off at your job so you won't be late. I'll come back and take the front tire off. I'll bring that along with the spare back to the garage to fix them. I work at Mack's Garage over on Elm. I can't leave the shop until it closes at five, but it you need a ride home I can drop by and pick you up. Whadda you think?" Daryl did a quick inventory on what junk he had on the front seat of the truck. Nothing like trying to impress a girl with a crapped out vehicle.

Emma realized that Daryl was going to be her savior. "I think it's perfect. I get out between two and three, but I can hang out and wait. You are a lifesaver. Daryl," she said flashing him a big smile.

"Then let's get you to work," he told her. He walked over to the passenger side door and opened it. Luckily there wasn't much on the seat just a ball cap and some papers. He dropped them behind the seat and held the door for Emma to get in. She tucked her legs inside and murmured a thanks as Daryl closed the door for her.

As he walked around the truck to get in he didn't ever remember doing that for another girl before. He silently patted himself on the back. The truck started up easily and as Daryl backed out he asked Emma where they were going.

"I work at the Parkview Diner. Do you know how to get there?"

Daryl had only been in town for about a month, but he thought he knew where it was. "Isn't it over by the auto parts store and the Dixie Market?"

"That's it. You don't know how much I appreciate this Daryl. I owe you big time," she told him.

"Naw, don't worry 'bout it. We're neighbors. No way I could leave you stranded like that, 'specially when this is what I do." Daryl glanced over and gave her a small smile. Emma was sitting very primly with her hands folded in her lap wearing her pink waitress uniform. This was such a different look than she had the first night he met he.

They drove in silence for a little while before Emma asked him if he was from the area. "Merle and me are from north Georgia. We've been moving around a bit and when I got the job at Mack's it seemed as good as any place to live." Daryl didn't want her to know that actually they were asked to leave or were evicted from their last three places that they lived. "Merle's gonna do the maintenance work around the park and I'll give him a hand with it."

"That'll be nice," Emma said. "There's the diner over there. Can you pull around the back to drop me off?"

"Yep." Daryl steered his old truck around the back and past a delivery truck. He turned to look at Emma and felt his heart start to speed up. She looked so pretty just sitting there in his pickup. He wondered how old she was. Suddenly he realized that Emma was talking to him and he wasn't paying attention. "Sorry, what'd you say?"

"You'll be back around 5 o'clock you said?"

"Yeah. I close the shop at five. My boss went fishin' this week so I should be here by quarter past. Pick you up back here?"

"Yes, that'll be fine. Thanks again Daryl." Emma leaned over and gave him a kiss on his cheek before she opened the door to head inside to the diner. She waved goodbye from the doorway and was gone before he even started the truck moving. She had surprised him with the kiss and when he reached up to touch his cheek, he realized how scruffy his face was. It was time to shave.

Daryl pulled around the building and headed back to the trailer park. He barely knew Emma, but she had him thinking about her like he had never thought about another woman before. Dating? What was dating? He met woman in bars when they were usually both too drunk to know better. One night stands was all he knew, and Emma was not one night stand material.

Daryl didn't do relationships. Moving around as much as they did made it tough, not to mention he never found anyone he wanted to be with that way. The women he met were good for a quick fuck, nothing more. Emma was definitely not a quick fuck, even though her outfit from the other night was on the sexy side, it just didn't suit her.

Before he knew it he was back at their trailers and was working in her car. He had the tire off in no time and threw that along with the spare in the bed of his truck. Daryl then quickly headed to the shop without his brother interfering at all.

Emma was only ten minutes late for her shift. She quickly stored her purse and was tying on her apron on when her boss saw her.

"New boyfriend, Emma?" Joe asked. He didn't miss that she was dropped off by a guy in an old pickup. Joe felt like the people that worked for him were family, so he kept close on eye on them. Emma had been working there for almost three years and he had a special place for her. She was like a daughter to him

"No Joe. Daryl just gave me a ride to work. My car has as flat tire and he moved in next door to me, so he gave me a lift. Sorry I'm late." Emma was never late so she hoped he wouldn't be mad at her.

Joe laughed. "If everyone was as on time as you are I would still have a full head of hair. It's not a problem, just get out on the floor as soon as you can."

"Thanks Joe!" Emma smiled and grabbed a pad from the counter and went out to find her section. The rest of her day was spent serving food, talking with the regulars and cleaning tables.

It was a busy day at the diner so time flew until three o'clock came. There was always a lull in business at that time of day. Emma slide into a quiet booth with a coke and stared out the window while she waited for Daryl to pick her up. He was a really nice guy. He was going so out of his way to help her. She didn't think any of the guys she had dated in the past would even have done that.

Coming out this morning and seeing the flat tire, deflated her as much as the tire was. Changing that was the last thing she wanted to do that morning, plus she wasn't sure that she even knew how. Luck was on her side when Daryl came out and took over. He actually was really hot, especially now that she got to see him up close. He was completely her type and she had done her best not to act stupid around him that morning. The voice in her head kept telling her no, she was finished with his type. She needed to find a nice boring guy.

Daryl was also so much nicer than his brother. Emma didn't tell Daryl, but she met Merle on Saturday while Daryl's truck was gone. She had done some food shopping and was unloading the car when a motorcycle pulled in. Emma recognized it as the one that had been there on and off so she figured it belonged to Daryl or his brother.

She was pulling the last of the bags out of the trunk when a dark shadow blocked the bright sun. She looked up and saw this tall man standing next to her leaning the car. Smile on his face instantly made her cringe.

"Hello, Sugar," he drawled. "What a nice surprise finding someone as pretty as you living right next door."

Emma grabbed the two bags put of trunk and closed it. "You must be Daryl's brother," she said trying to be neighborly. "I'm Emma."

"So, my little brother's already been sniffing over here. Well good for him, but he ain't got nuthin' on his big brother Merle here. Let me take those bags for ya." Merle figured she was easy pickings and he always overestimated his appeal to woman. He thought they all wanted him when in fact, most did not want him within a hundred feet of them.

Before Emma could politely refuse his unwanted help, a silver car pulled in behind the motorcycle. Two equally scary guys got out and greeted Merle. Emma quickly said she was fine and escaped into her trailer locking the door behind her. Merle was beyond creepy. She hoped Daryl wasn't like that, but she had only met him for a minute. If he was, living next to them was going to be a nightmare.

Now almost forty-eight hours after that unfortunate encounter, Emma could see that Daryl was nothing like his brother. "Thank God," she thought as she sipped her soda. If he was, she may have to consider moving which she didn't want to do as she liked her little trailer. Even though she rented it, it felt like it was her own home. Time went by slowly as she waited for Daryl to pick her up. Eventually she got up to refill all of the sugar, salt and pepper and condiments they left on the table for customers. It would be less work for evening girls to do and she was bored.

Daryl looked at his watch and it was almost five o'clock. "Finally," he thought. He had taken care of the two tires right when he got in. The spare only needed air, but the other tire did have a nail in it. It was easy to fix with a plug. It basically cost him nothing to fix it.

The rest of his day he only had two cars to work on. He replaced spark plugs in one and tuned up another. That still left a lot of hours for him to do nothing, but think about Emma. He tried tinkering with his own pickup, but he couldn't concentrate so he gave up on that, but he did give it a thorough cleaning. His truck was ancient as it was a '73 Ford, but the engine ran beautifully thanks to his hard work on it. The outside was another story. It was an old outdated blue truck that had white panels on the sides. They used to be white, now they were more of a gray, but he never had the money to get it repainted. It ran well that was all he cared.

At five o'clock on the dot, he locked the doors and headed off to pick up Emma. Her tires were in the bed of the pickup all ready to go back on her car or in the trunk.

Daryl felt himself getting a little bit nervous as he approached the diner. He was never confident around women and Emma had his head spinning anyway, so he needed to get himself together before he picked her up.

Emma had been keeping a look out the big diner windows for Daryl's truck for the past ten minutes. It wasn't even quarter after five yet, but she didn't want to miss him.

"Hear you're waiting on a guy," said a voice from next to her. Emma looked over and saw her friend Cassie who worked the evening shift smiling at her.

"Joe had a big mouth."

"I know and I love it or how else would I know about this mystery guy," Cassie laughed.

Emma rolled her eyes. "He's not a mystery, he's my next door neighbor. My car had a flat this morning so he's fixing it for me and took me to work today. I'm just waiting for him to pick me up. It's nothing." She was trying to make it sound that simple, but as much as Emma was fighting it, she was really looking forward to seeing him again.

"So let me get this straight, you have a guy that you've never talked about before giving you rides and fixing your tire. I can't even get my husband to put his dishes in the dishwasher and you have a guy fixing your tire?" Cassie stood there looking at Emma. She knew there was more behind it and she would pry it out of Emma eventually. She always could.

"Cass, you're making this into a bigger thing than it is. He works at a garage and he gave me a hand. That's it," she tried to explain.

"Is he cute? What's his name and how old is he?" Cassie fired off.

"His name is Daryl and I don't know how old he is. Maybe mid-thirties," Emma told her. She purposefully didn't answer that last question.

"And?"

"And what?" she asked playing dumb. It was almost five fifteen, where was Daryl? Cassie was asking questions that she didn't want to answer.

"Is he cute?" Cassie asked again. She knew a stall when she saw one.

Right then Daryl's pickup pulled into the parking lot. Emma's face lit up. Cassie turned to see Daryl driving the truck around the back, but she was able to get a good look at him. "That's him, isn't it? Oh, he's got that good-looking bad boy thing going for him. You don't stand a chance Emma," Cassie told her. She knew the type of guy that always attracted her friend and Emma got hurt every single time. "Be careful, hun."

"Cassie, he's just my neighbor, nothing else, okay?" Emma gave her a quick hug. "Thanks for worrying. Gotta go!"

Emma grabbed her purse, ran through the kitchen and out the back door. Daryl was there waiting for her. Cassie watched her friend wave goodbye and drive off. She knew whether Emma was going to admit it or not, this Daryl was heading to be more than her next door neighbor.

.

* * *

Thanks for the reviews WalkingAddiction and the guest. Glad you are enjoying the story so far.

Walker Witch


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Emma climbed into Daryl's truck and he started them towards home. She looked down at her stained uniform and felt embarrassed by it. She had coffee on her and god knows what else. Busy days always meant messy days and as hard as she tried to stay clean, Emma never could. She quickly looked over at Daryl and realized that he was in the same boat. They both worked dirty jobs.

"How'd my tires do?" she asked him finally breaking the silence.

"Good. The spare only needed air and the other one had a nail in it that I plugged. Easy fixes," he told her. He wished he was comfortable making small talk, but he wasn't.

"That sounds good. What do I owe you?"

"Nuthin'"

"C'mon, Daryl I must owe you something," Emma asked again.

"Naw. Garages never charge for plugs and I was happy to do it. Didn't have that much going today so I had plenty of time fix 'em." It seemed like he was helping a lot of women in need these last few days. It made him feel surprisingly good.

Emma was happy that she didn't have to spend any money to fix her tires. "Thank you Daryl. I really appreciate it."

"I'll put the front tire back on when we get back. Shouldn't take me long at all," he told her. The rest of the trip was done in silence as neither knew what to say to the other, but wished they did.

Daryl finally pulled the truck into the trailer park and he pulled to a stop in front of his trailer. Merle's motorcycle was gone much to his relief. "Looks like my brother's gone," he said making conversation.

"He's not like you," was all that Emma could think of saying.

Daryl quickly turned and looked at Emma before she got out of the pickup. He put his hand on her arm, 'You've met Merle?" he asked surprised. The way Emma said yes she had, he knew Merle had been his usual dick self. "Did he do or say anything…stupid?"

"He just makes me feel uncomfortable," she told him looking at her hands.

"Sumbitch!" he said under his breath. "Emma I'm sorry. I'll talk to him. I don't know why he is such a …such a…" Daryl couldn't think of a word that he wanted to say in front of her.

"Jerk?" Emma volunteered.

"That's a nice way of putting it, but we'll go with that. But Emma, if he bothers you or makes you feel uncomfortable again, you need to tell me right away. Okay?" He waited for her to look at him. When she finally did he could see the relief in her deep green eyes.

"Thank you Daryl. He's so not like you," she told him with a smile. Daryl loved the way her face lit up when she looked at him that way.

He hated being so shy around woman, only when he had been drinking did he ever get lucky and that was usually because they came on to him. "Naw, we're not alike much anymore. When I was younger I was trying to be like him, but I just couldn't do it anymore." Daryl had spent enough wasted time being angry and acting like a jackass like his brother. He finally started to become his own man. "Enough of me, let's get that tire back on the car for you."

They both got out of the truck and Daryl easily grabbed a tire from the back. Maybe he would think of something to say to her, if his hands were busy doing what they did best…fixing cars. The car was still up on the jack, so it was easy to get the front tire back on. He noticed that Emma had gone inside and he was disappointed. He was taking the jack off when she reappeared wearing jeans and a t-shirt and holding two glasses of what looked like tea. Daryl stood up wiping his hands on his pants. "Damn, she sure looked good in those jeans," he thought to himself.

"I thought you might be thirsty, so I brought us out some sweet tea," Emma said holding out a glass. She felt bad that he had done all of this for her and she had nothing to offer him. On the spur of the moment, she decided to get out of her messy work uniform and offer him a drink of tea. It was all she had. Maybe he would stay longer if she invited him for a drink on her little bitty porch…just maybe.

Daryl drank down half the glass before he stopped. He wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. "Thanks, that's good."

"It's the least I can do, since you fixed the car." Emma leaned against the car and smiled at Daryl " _What am I doing?_ " she asked herself. Guys like him are off limits, aren't they? Maybe he didn't fall into that bad boy category that she thrown him into… maybe Daryl was different? Maybe? Hopefully.

Caution went flying out the proverbial window. "Wanna sit for a second?" she asked him. "You never told me about the garage you work at."

"Never asked," Daryl replied. He lit up a cigarette and slowly inhaled the smoke. He was nervous sitting here with Emma and smoking always helped.

'Well I just did, so what's it like?" Emma knew the best way to get a guy talking was to ask him about something he liked. This was a start. Emma started walking toward the two chairs he had on her small front porch and Daryl followed.

He was comfortable talking about cars, so this was good. He had never met a woman that after they knew he worked in a garage, wanted to know more, but Emma did. Daryl did something that he rarely did, he relaxed and talked. Emma kept plying him with questions and before he knew it he had told her about the job, about Mack and how he got into cars. He could not believe how easy it was to talk to her.

"I know Merle rides the motorcycle, what about you?" Emma asked. She had always wanted to try riding one, but never did. It was the side if her that she kept hidden that had always wanted to ride and right now she would give anything to ride behind Daryl. "Oh God, Cassie was right," she thought. "I don't stand a chance. I'm falling for him already."

This was Daryl's other passion. If he wasn't working on cars, he loved working on motorcycles. "I ride 'em, fix 'em and build 'em. I sold mine a while back and just haven't gotten another one yet." The money from the bike that he loved went to paying for a motel room for a week and paying off a dealer that Merle owned that was threatening to kill him. Just another time he had to bail his brother out of a jam. Damn, he had really liked that bike too.

The roar of a motorcycle engine started to fill the quiet air. Daryl could see Merle coming down the road toward them. "Speaking of the devil," he mumbled.

Emma giggled. "It was like he knew we were talking about him." Emma was not looking forward to Merle coming over to join them, but she knew he would. His type always did.

Daryl stood up, not wanting Merle to ruin this great time he had with Emma. "Let me get the spare out of the truck and put it in your trunk," he said suddenly. Daryl handed Emma the empty glass and he went and quickly grabbed the tire out of the pickup. It was in the trunk before Emma could blink.

Merle was on his way over to Emma's and that was the last thing Daryl wanted. "Thanks for the tea Emma. See ya around," he told her before turning to talk to Merle.

"Thank you!" she called out, but she could see that he wasn't paying attention. Her heart sank a little.

"What you got going on over here little brother?" Merle asked with that snide smile he always had. "Cozying up to our pretty little neighbor, I see. Proud of you, boy. Usually you ain't got enough balls to talk to 'em. She sure looks ripe for the taking."

" _Couldn't he keep his fuckin' mouth shut just once_?" Daryl wondered. " _Just fuckin' once_." He had to get him out of there. "Bro, I just fixed her flat tire, that was it. I was just being neighborly, she sure as hell ain't my type. C'mon let's go inside, we got any beer left?" Daryl put his hand on Merle's chest and turned him around back towards their trailer. He didn't look back at Emma, who heard everything he said.

"Just being neighborly," she mimicked. Good thing she found out the truth before she fell too hard for him. He was a jerk like his brother. Then she said the first thing that came to mind, "Fuck you Daryl," and she slammed the door behind her.

Daryl heard Emma's door slam and knew he had screwed up. All he had wanted to do was to get Merle out of there before he embarrassed him in front of Emma. Now it looks like he did that all on his own.

"She's a nice piece of ass," Merle snickered.

"Get inside," Daryl told him. "She ain't a piece of ass, jackass. She's a nice girl and our neighbor, so just leave her alone."

"Awe, c'mon bro. You know I don't mean her any harm."

"Just stay away from her, okay?" It was impossible to control Merle, but he would do his best.

Daryl looked around the trailer and saw it was a mess from the weekend. "C'mon let's get rid of this shit that's all over the place. Help me out, man." Daryl grabbed a couple of garbage bags that he has seen under the sink and tossed one to Merle. He could see that Merle didn't want to do it. "C'mon this is the best place we've lived in years. Let's try to keep it that way."

"Okay, little brother, but you need to help me fix the sink in #23. Damn bitch has it all jammed up," he told Daryl.

Daryl rolled his eyes at Merle. This was exactly what he expected, he was going to get stuck fixing shit for his brother, even though it was Merle's job. He was a mechanic, not a plumber. "You're comin' with me," he told Merle.

After bickering back and forth and cleaning up the garbage around the trailer, they both finally headed out to fix the sink. Daryl threw his toolbox in the back of the pickup and together with Merle they drove off.

Emma was nowhere in sight.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The rest of the week went by both slowly and quickly for Daryl. Work was busy and he was happy that the days flew by. He took in as many jobs as he could, as he wanted to show Mack that he could handle the shop alone and do it well. Some nights he stayed late to finish a last minute repair, but each day he went home he felt like he accomplished something with his day. It was a good feeling that lasted until he got home. Then the nights dragged on. He hadn't seen Emma since Monday. She managed to come and go without him seeing her at all. He needed to talk to her, but he had no idea what to say.

Daryl gave himself a pep talk all the way home after work. It was early Thursday evening, so he hoped her car would be there when he got in. He had stayed late to finish up a radiator repair. That same nervousness came over him as he pulled into the complex and headed for home. He could feel his heart beating rapidly as he turned the corner, but when he saw the empty parking space at Emma's it dropped instead. She wasn't home.

Emma knew it was childish the way she had been avoiding Daryl all week. He disappointed her. Just when she was starting too really like him and even though they were just neighbors for now, his words to his brother hurt her. Emma had hoped they were moving towards something other than just living next door to each other. She was just glad that she figured him out before she let herself really fall for him. Once she stopped being mad, she would be civil to him, nothing more.

When Emma had left to go to work at the bar that evening, his truck wasn't around, it was a relief that she could leave without the possibility of seeing him. She was not ready to talk to him yet. So now a couple hours later while she was waiting for her drink order to be filled by the bartender she was daydreaming about the guy she didn't want to daydream about. As mad as she was, she still thought about him all the time

She so wasn't looking forward to tomorrow. Friday mornings were always tough. She worked at the bar until closing and then had the early shift at the diner. No matter how long she did this, she was always exhausted on Fridays.

Emma dragged herself home at twelve thirty in the morning, smelling of beer and smoke, took a quick shower and was asleep the second her head hit the pillow. The alarm would be ringing all too soon.

Daryl woke up Friday morning knowing this was his last day of running the shop before Mack got back on Monday. He lay in bed for a few minutes running his day through his head. He had a couple of easy jobs to do, plus a truck that needed a whole new set of brakes, so depending if anything last minute came in, he should be comfortably busy.

His stomach grumbled and Daryl realized he was starving. When he looked in the refrigerator last night it was completely empty of food and even beer. He would have to stop off and pickup something on his way in. Then he got an idea, but could he do it? Should he do it? Why he couldn't get breakfast at Emma's diner? It had to be better than anything he could grab from a drive through and he could see Emma. He had to talk to her and while this wasn't the best place to catch her, she at least couldn't get away.

"Wow, "he thought. "Do I really want to do this?" He knew he had to, so before he could chicken out he jumped in the shower, put on the cleanest work clothes he had left and headed off to the diner.

Daryl was able to park the truck in front before the nerves really kicked in. " _Man up you pussy_ ," he scolded himself. He got out of the truck quickly before he could change his mind and walked through the front door of the diner as a man with a purpose.

There was an older man at the cash register counter right where he walked in. "By yourself, son?" he asked.

"Yeah," Daryl answered looking around for Emma. She wasn't out front. At least she couldn't tell him to leave before he sat down.

"If you want a counter seat, just help yourself or would you prefer a table?"

"Can I get a table in Emma's section?" Daryl asked. This was it, he was actually going to see her and apologize. It wasn't that he thought he was right, he wasn't, it just was something he didn't do because he rarely cared this much about a woman to even consider apologizing and here he was doing it, or at least trying.

Joe looked him over and then it clicked who he was. "You drive the two tone pickup, don't you?" This was Emma's neighbor that dropped her off the other day. Joe was curious to know why he was here.

"Yep, that's me," Daryl told him looking him straight in the eye. He had nothing to hide.

Joe met his eyes for a moment, before grabbing a menu and heading toward a booth that was part of Emma's section. "Thanks for bringing her in the other day. I appreciate it and that you helped her fix the tire. She's like a daughter to me," Joe told him. He placed the menu down on a table and looked at Daryl. "This is Emma's section." He held out his hand to shake Daryl's. "Names, Joe. Thanks again."

"Daryl. It was no problem." He shook the older man's hand, before sitting down and checking out the menu. He had eaten in enough diners to know what they typically offered. This one was no different, which was a good thing, as he could not concentrate on what he was reading. Then he heard her voice.

Emma came out of the kitchen with her arms loaded down with food. She was laughing at something someone in the back had said. She looked beautiful.

Daryl buried his head in the menu so she wouldn't see him until it was too late. It just took another few minutes before she came over distracted so she didn't recognize him right away.

"Coffee?" she asked holding the half full pot over the empty cup on the table.

"Yeah," he replied looking up so she could see it was him.

"Daryl?" she exclaimed almost dropping the pot. "What are you doing here?'

"Having breakfast," he said with a small smile that tilted up the corner of his mouth just a little. "And I wanted to see you. You haven't been around lately. I…umm…need to talk to ya."

Emma put the coffee pot down. She cocked her hip to the side crossed her arms across her chest. He had nerve coming to her job. "Daryl, I am working. I really don't know what we need to talk about, so if you are ready to order I would appreciate it. I'm busy."

Daryl looked around the diner and only saw a scattering of customers and at least one other waitress. "Sure. Three eggs over easy, homefries, a side of hash, bacon and sausage."

"You're gonna eat all that?"

"Yep. You gonna write it down?" he asked with a smile. Suddenly he was no longer nervous.

Emma looked down at Daryl and raised her eyebrows. "I don't need to. Do you want white, wheat, or rye toast?"

"You choose. Surprise me."

She rolled her eyes at him, grabbed the coffee pot and started to walk away. "Emma?" Daryl called out.

"What?" she snapped.

"Can I have some coffee?" He knew he had her flustered, and that was better than her yelling at him.

Emma scowled at him and poured coffee into his cup, before stalking off to the kitchen to try to remember what the hell he had ordered.

Fifteen minutes later she dropped an omelet in front of him, with a side of sausage and grits. Daryl tried to hold back a laugh. "Well, you got the sausage right."

Emma plopped down across from him. "Damn, I was so sure I got it right. It's all your fault, showing up here when I'm so mad at you. I can usually do a table of six without writing it down and I couldn't even get your one order right."

"Besides the fact that I am hungry, and as usual we had nothing to eat at home, I wanted to apologize. Emma…Emma, will you look at me?" Daryl asked. "I know you heard what I said to Merle, but I didn't mean it. I was just trying to get him away from you. If he knew that we were becoming friends, he would ruin it. He always does. I'm sorry. Don't be mad at me…please?" That was the most heartfelt speech he had ever given. It wasn't much, but for Daryl it was. You didn't apologize in his family because that showed that you were weak. Dixon's weren't weak.

Emma's resolve crumbled. "I'm not mad…well I sorta was, but now I'm not. I understand…now, what you did and I appreciate it." She should have known he was just doing it for Merle. He had told her what his brother was like and that wasn't Daryl. She gave him a big smile. "Friends?"

 _Fuck, yeah_. "Friends," he told her. It felt like a huge weight flew off his shoulders. With a grin he dug into the omelet he didn't order.

Emma stood up as she knew she had to get back to work. "Let me get you what you ordered," she offered. She rarely screwed up orders and figures it would have to be his.

"Naw, I'm good. Gotta get to the shop soon anyway," Daryl told her. Emma got called away for another order and Daryl forced the omelet down. " _Mushrooms! She hadda put mushrooms in it_ ," he moaned. He was going to eat every bite of the omelet even though he hated mushrooms. However, there was no way he was touching the grits. He might be a southern boy, but he didn't do grits.

Daryl finished up his breakfast, without touching the grits, downed the last of his coffee and looked for Emma. He had to get going. He caught her eye and she motioned that she would be right over.

Emma popped into the kitchen, grabbed the takeout bag on the counter and headed back to Daryl. She placed the bag on the table with a sheepish grin.

"What's that?" asked Daryl.

"Just me making up for screwing up your order. You can eat it for lunch." Emma looked at the clock on the wall and saw it was ten to eight. "You better get going, it's almost eight."

Damn, it was past time to go. "You gonna give me a check so I can pay?" he asked extending his hand.

Emma ripped a check off her pad and handed it to him. "See you later?"

"Yeah," he said with a smile. He took the bag she had brought him off the table, dropped a five for her tip and headed off to pay. Driving to the shop, Daryl looked at the bag on the seat next to him. No one had ever given him a lunch to bring to work before. No one ever cared enough to think that he may need something to eat. The bag made Daryl smile. He just hoped that whatever she had given him for lunch just didn't have mushrooms in it.

By the end of his day, Daryl felt really good. He sat in Mack's office and ran the total money brought in that week. It looked good to him, but he never knew what the shop usually brought in each week. The money was safely locked away as Mack had showed him and best of all; Merle never figured out Daryl was working alone this week.

On his way home he passed a pizza joint and instantly got an idea. He turned the truck around and headed back. He ordered two large pies to take back with him. Maybe he could get Emma to join him? That thought got his fingers tapping on the counter as he waited for the pizzas. Now he was very anxious to get home.

He pulled the truck into his spot and took a quick glance at the pizzas next to him, still safe and sound on the front seat. Then he immediately looked for Emma's car and it was parked right where he hoped it would be. Daryl purposefully took his time getting out of the pickup. He slammed the driver's door, before heading over to the passenger side you get the pizzas. He was trying to get Emma to come to him, instead of him knocking on her door. " _Man, I'm pitiful_ ," he thought.

He grabbed the boxes of the front seat and when he turned there she was standing in her doorway. She flashed him a smile that left him weak all the way to his knees. He held onto the boxes tighter. "Picked up pizza. Got plenty if you want," he told her.

Emma thought of the sandwich she had just made that sat on the counter. That sucker was headed for the garbage, she wanted pizza and the guy that was carrying it. "Yes, sounds good, but…umm…where?" Emma did not want to go to his trailer not with the chance of his brother showing up.

"Oh…ah…yeah not here. Merle's gone, but I don't know when he'll be back."

"Then come over here. I picked up a movie. I was going it watch tonight, so we could do both?" Emma suggested. She had carefully picked a movie that wasn't a chick flick like she normally watched, she chose a new release with a hot young actor that looked like it dealt with cars called _'Fast and Furious_.' She hoped Daryl would like it.

"Great. I'll change clothes and be over. Maybe you should take one of these boxes in case Merle comes home?" Daryl walked over and handed a pizza to Emma. "I'll be back in fifteen, 'kay?"

"See you then," Emma smiled. She watched him walk over to his trailer and disappear inside. The she bolted for the kitchen. The pizza went on the counter and the sandwich into the garbage. Then it was a whirlwind to make sure everything was neat as a pin inside, even though it already was.

Back in the small kitchen she started to take out plates, but quickly realized that Daryl didn't seem to be the type to eat pizza on a plate, so a handful of napkins came out instead. She poured to glasses of sweet tea and sat down to wait.

Inside his place, Daryl decided to take a quick shower after working with grease and oil all day. He spent more time trying to get his hands clean than anything else. A towel dry of the hair, a quick comb and a change into clean clothes was done faster than he thought possible. As he locked the door behind him he took a deep breath. Was this a date? Did he even know how to date? He wasn't sure where this was going to go, but he sure hoped somewhere.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Daryl knocked on the screen door of Emma's trailer and he heard her call out to come on in. He stepped into the living room. It was neat, clean and very homey. He saw how the small touches she had from throw pillows, to pictures and knickknacks made a difference. He had lived sparsely his whole life, never needing to spend money on anything but the essentials. Emma's trailer was a home, his was a place to sleep. Nothing more.

Emma was in the kitchen wiping down the counter. "I spilled one of the glasses of tea I poured for us," she told him. "I'm such a klutz sometimes."

"I saw you carry out multiple plates for food at the diner and didn't drop them."

"I know can you believe that? But give me one glass and there it goes," she laughed. Emma poured another glass of tea and placed it next to the other one on the counter. Then she opened the oven and pulled the pizza box out. "Keeping it warm for us. If you want to take the drinks, I got the box and we can settle in by the TV."

Daryl picked up the glasses and followed Emma into the living room. She placed the pizza box on the coffee table and opened the top. "Oh good plain cheese, that's my favorite," Emma said grabbing a slice.

"Mine too." Daryl put the drinks down and grabbed a slice for himself.

There was a slightly awkward silence while they ate the pizza. Daryl knew he was awful at small talk. He could not think of a single think to say or ask. His head went completely blank.

Finally Emma spoke, "Busy at work today?"

"Enough to keep me doing something all day. Mack comes back Monday. I just hope he's okay with everything I did. Seems like I took in a lot of money, but who knows?" he answered. "How was yours?"

"Slow breakfast, but busy lunch...and I didn't screw up any other orders," Emma laughed. She grabbed another slice from the box.

Daryl teased her about messing up his order and it seemed the ice broke as the conversation kept flowing. After they practically finished the entire pizza with Daryl doing most of the damage, the box went back into the kitchen, as they got ready to watch the movie.

Emma popped the DVD in as Daryl check out the case. " _Didn't expect this_ ," he thought. Here he was getting ready to sit through some chick flick and she has _Fast and Furious_. "You like this?" he asked.

"Yes and no," she told him. Emma could see Daryl was confused. "I got it because Paul Walker was in it."

Daryl laughed and Emma grabbed the remote and turned on the movie. She sat down on the sofa near Daryl, but not super close. She did not know if this was a date or not, so she was playing it safe. She would have preferred snuggling up with him, but they weren't there…yet.

It was a good movie and they both enjoyed it. When it was over, they both were much more relaxed with each other. Conversation came easily, but it was all general topics. The deeper personal questions still remained. Where are you from? Family? Anything to do with their past hadn't been brought up.

Meanwhile, Daryl was having a silent battle with himself. Should I hold her hand? Should I kiss her? What if she doesn't want that? He was so confused on what to do. He didn't date. He didn't do relationships and he had no idea what to do now. He was nearing forty years old and felt like he was fourteen.

Emma went to get more tea and when she sat back down on the sofa, she was definitely closer to Daryl. He took that as a hint to make a move, no matter how small he needed to do something. Just when he got up the nerve to hold onto her hand, his phone rang.

"I'm sorry," he said to Emma and pulled it out of his pocket. He flipped it open and saw it was Merle. He didn't answer it. "It's my brother. I'm gonna ignore him."

Then he called back again.

And again.

"You better answer it,' Emma told him.

Daryl didn't say anything to Emma, he just flipped open his phone and said "What?"

Emma watched the one way conversation and could tell that Daryl wasn't happy. He got up from the sofa and started pacing the room. "Bro, why did you go with that asshole? You know you can't trust him. No, I don't want to come pick you up. Why? I'm busy." Emma could tell that Merle was talking. "No, it's none of your damned business what I'm doing. Merle…No."

Daryl started to run his fingers through his short hair. Now? Merle needed him to come pick him up now in Dentonville, which was almost two hours away. The guy he went with took off without him and he had no way to get back. This completely ruined his time with Emma. _Fuck_.

"Fine. Be there in a couple of hours. Where you at?" Daryl turned to Emma, "You got sumthin' to write with?"

She ran to her small desk and grabbed a pen and pad and handed them to Daryl. "Okay, what's the name of the bar? The address? Just fuckin' ask someone, bro. C'mon." There was silence for a second and Daryl didn't look at Emma. "Two hours," was all he said before hanging up.

Daryl finally turned back to face her. "I gotta go."

"Where is he stuck?"

"Dentonville. I'm sorry Emma. I was…really having a nice time," he told her.

"Me too," Emma said with a smile. "I…could go with you if you wanted?"

Daryl immediately knew that was a bad idea. "No. Appreciate the offer and any other time would be fine, but not now and not with Merle. I'm too pissed off to be civil to him and he's been drinking. If you came I'd probably end up killing him. His goddamned mouth is gonna be in overdrive and you don't want to be around it." No way was he going to allow Emma to come. He had no idea what he would find when he got to Merle. Drunk…yes. High…probably. Obnoxious…most definitely.

Emma didn't need to see this or to see him when he had to deal with Merle this way. Again he wished he had a normal brother or at least one that knew when to keep his mouth shut, instead of spouting off the crap he did.

He appreciated her offer, but no she couldn't come. "Understand?" he asked.

Secretly Emma was relieved. "Yeah, I do. Careful driving. It's a long trip both ways."

"I'll pick up a coffee on my way. I'm sorry Emma," he apologized. He was going to kill Merle anyway.

Emma moved so she stood right in front of him. "Not your fault, so don't worry. Just stay safe." She stood on her tip toes and gave him a gentle kiss on his cheek.

Daryl put his hand under her chin and leaned in and kissed her on the lips. He surprised himself in doing it. It was soft, tender and loving. It lasted just a few seconds, but it was extraordinary. It brought to the surface emotions that Daryl never thought possible. He needed more from Emma, but he couldn't have it…not now _. Fuckin' Merle_.

Emma touched Daryl's scruffy cheek. The unshaven look really worked for him she thought. The feelings that were whirling around her she had never experienced before. Even the guys that she thought she had loved, their kisses never touched her the way this simple kiss did. It made her weak, yet excited at the same time. "I'll be here when you get back," she said softly.

"As soon as I can," he told her not wanting to leave. Daryl forced himself to walk out the door silently cursing his brother the entire time. Just when everything was going perfectly…the Dixon Curse hit. If it can go wrong, it will.

* * *

 _ **A/N - Thank you to everyone that is reading GONE. It's so cool to see so many people from all over the world love TWD, Daryl and read my stories. But come on, how could we not love Daryl? Right?**_

 _ **Special thanks to my readers that have been leaving reviews. I love to see you getting so involved with the characters. Thanks to Walking Addiction, enchantmentanjel, Miss October 13 and jeanf. I love hearing from you and everyone else.**_

 _ **Hope you enjoy Chapter 7**_.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The Dixon Curse was in rare form. Everything that could have gone wrong did and then some, all happening to Daryl. First, he spilled the coffee he had picked up for drink on the way. Scalding hot coffee in his lap, which meant he sat on a wet seat for two hours. Then when he got to the bar, Merle wasn't there. After looking all over for him, Daryl finally asked the bartender and found out that Merle had been hauled off to jail. He was drunk and when he caused a scene with several patrons, he wouldn't leave when asked to. He apologized to the bartender for his brother being "a fuckin' idiot" and asked for directions to the police station.

Daryl walked out of the bar furious. This trip just got a hell of lot more complicated. It was no longer a simple pick up, now he had to get Merle out of jail. That could mean bail or a fine. Daryl pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. He had just about a hundred dollars. That's all he had left until Mack paid him for this week. He didn't know if it would be enough.

He called Merle every foul name he could think of on the trip over to the jail. Why couldn't anything go right for him? Why did Merle have to fuck up everything for him? Whether it was intentional or not, his timing was always the absolute worst.

Daryl parked outside of the Dentonville police station. This was a small town and it could go two ways – easy or hard. Daryl knew this was going to go hard just like everything else that day. He got out of the pickup and slowly walked in to find out what the situation was. He was expecting the worse and he was right.

The officer at the desk told him that Merle was originally charged with public intoxication and disturbing the peace, but the bar wasn't going to press any charges so it as being dropped down to a simply public intoxication charge. That came with a one hundred dollar fine. Merle would be released upon payment.

Daryl pulled out his wallet and had ninety dollars. He was ten short. Where the hell was he going to get ten bucks? "Is there a pawn shop around here?" he asked the officer.

"About two blocks down on the right, called Denton Pawn. Can't miss it."

On the way back to the pickup, Daryl did a quick inventory on what he could pawn. He needed only ten bucks. He had his watch and his phone. He had only gotten the phone after starting at Mack's so he really didn't want to part with it. That left his watch, which he knew wasn't worth much, but he didn't need much.

He drove down the street and found the pawn shop. He went inside and saw that it was no different than any other one he'd been in, just shelves and shelves of crap that people had to get rid of. The clerk was working with a guy that was looking at jewelry so Daryl had to wait…and wait and wait.

Finally it was his turn. He told the guy he was looking to pawn his watch. He handed it over and the clerk looked at it and offered ten dollars. Daryl asked for twenty and they settled on fifteen. He had five extra bucks.

By the time he got back to the police station it was going on ten o'clock at night. There was a new officer at the desk. Daryl explained that he was there to pay the fine for Merle Dixon.

"You need to come back Monday when the town clerk is in," the officer said.

"The other officer didn't tell me that before. Man, we're not local, there ain't anythin' we can do?" Daryl asked frustrated.

"Sorry, only Sylvia collects fines and she isn't back until Monday."

"What time?" Daryl was getting angrier by the minute. His day was getting worse and worse.

"Seven o'clock." The officer moved away from the desk to answer the phone.

Daryl went back out to his truck and slammed the door. He had to figure out what to do next. He crossed his arms on the steering wheel and rested his forehead on them. He could drive home, spend the weekend with Emma and be back first thing Monday morning. With any luck he'd only be maybe thirty minutes late for work. He sat back and looked at his fuel gauge. He had less than a half a tank. If he went home, he wouldn't have the gas to get back and if he waited until he got paid by Mack, he couldn't get Merle out until Tuesday. As much as he was pissed off at his brother, he couldn't leave him in jail an extra day.

The only choice he had was to hang out here until Monday morning. He had only five dollars to live on and no place to stay. He would be living in his truck…again, thanks to Merle. He pulled out his phone to call Emma, but stopped. He didn't have her number or even know her last name. She would wonder what happened to him and he had no way to tell her.

Now he had to find a place to park for the night, without wasting any gas. In a small town that was harder than it sounded. There were less places to hide his truck as the police would be on the lookout for strange vehicles. Daryl started the truck and drove off hating his life.

* * *

Monday morning didn't come fast enough. Daryl was tired from not sleeping for two nights and he was hungry as the five dollars he had didn't go far. He was also out of cigarettes and that had him on edge. Daryl arrived at the police station early to find out where the clerk's office was. Luckily, it was in the same building, so he was standing outside the door waiting for her when she arrived.

He had the fine paid with his last one hundred dollars and went to collect his brother. When Merle finally came out twenty minutes later, he looked in better shape than Daryl was. At least he had a place to sleep and meals, Daryl had nothing.

Merle didn't say anything until they got into the pickup. "Thanks brother, but what took you so long?"

Daryl turned and looked at his older brother. He was furious. "What took me so long? You make me drive two hours to pick your sorry ass up and I get here and find out that you couldn't keep your fuckin' drunk mouth shut and got yourself arrested. I had to spend my last dime including hocking my watch to pay the fine in which I find out that the clerk isn't around on weekends so I had to sleep in my truck for two fuckin' nights with no food! Next time don't get arrested in a half-ass small town, better yet asshole…don't get arrested…period!"

For once Merle kept his mouth shut. He could sense that he may have pushed Daryl too far, but what good was having a brother if he didn't get you out of jams?

Daryl started up the truck. "Do not say a word to me at all or you can walk home. " He hated his brother right then. Why did Merle do the things he did? He never thought on how anything he did affected him and he never cared. Daryl was coming to the end if his rope with Merle. Brother or not, he had to get his shit together.

"But…"

"What the fuck did I just say? Shut up! You completely ruined my weekend, I got no money now and I'm gonna be late for work. Do not say one fuckin' word!" Daryl yelled. Merle never got it. He was a grown ass man and he needed to start acting like it. Daryl was completely fed up with him.

Daryl drove as fast as he dared and arrived back at the trailer by nine thirty. He had called Mack earlier to ask if he could come in at ten, instead of nine and Mack said that was fine.

Merle put his hand on the door handle, but turned to Daryl before opening it. He could tell that Daryl was different about this, that he was really upset with him. He had seen Daryl pissed at him, but this was different. Merle got out of the truck without saying anything.

Daryl wouldn't look at Merle, he just kept staring straight ahead. Once the door closed he backed out and headed to work, but not before noticing that Emma's car was gone. He hoped to be able to see her after work. He had to let her know what happened and why he didn't come back.

Besides being late, his work day went great even though he was exhausted. Mack was impressed on the amount of business he did on his own, not to mention how clean the shop looked. Daryl kept busy doing some easy repair jobs and five o'clock came fast enough. Normally Daryl worked three to four days a week, depending on the amount of work there was to do. Mack was giving him Wednesday off, but at least he was getting four days.

Just before he left for the day, Mack paid him for last week. It was good to have cash again. Daryl hated the helpless feeling he always had when he didn't have any money. When he pulled in he noticed that Emma still wasn't home and Merle's bike was gone. "Thank God," he thought. He still wasn't in the mood to deal with him.

Daryl ate the fast food he had picked up on the way home. He only had something to eat on Saturday, so he had gone without eating all Sunday and most of Monday. He was starving.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Daryl woke up with a start and quickly sat up in bed. He was momentarily disoriented. The first thing he realized was that it was dark outside. He quickly checked his phone and saw it was after midnight. He had slept for over six hours. "Fuck!" he exclaimed. He should have set his alarm on his phone. He looked out his bedroom window and saw Emma's car, but everything was dark in her trailer. His bad luck was continuing.

He had nothing else to do, except go back to sleep. This time he set his alarm before lying back down still in his clothes from last night. He closed his eyes and was instantly asleep.

This time when he woke up, the room was bright with the morning sun. He stretched before getting out of bed and then headed for the shower, but not before checking out to see Emma's car was there. It was not. He figured if he showered fast, he would have time to go to the diner for breakfast and he could see her then.

He was in his pickup, pulling out of the trailer park within twenty minutes. On his drive over, he thought back to Friday night. It seemed so long ago since he saw her. When he kissed her, he surprised himself. He wanted to do it, he knew he was going to do it, but it still surprised him that he actually did do it.

Kissing was always means to an end for him. Kisses were sloppy and desperate and lead to him getting laid. They weren't soft and meaningful, like he shared with Emma. This was a whole new experience for him and it made him nervous. What if he wasn't good at this romantic shit? For once he actually cared about what happened.

Daryl saw the need in her eyes and knew that she had wanted him to kiss her. He had never met a girl like Emma. He was used to white trash and quickies and she was anything but. Emma was pretty, sweet and no one had ever made him feel like she did. The closer he got to the diner the more excited he was to see her again. Daryl had never felt like this before. He was scared, yet thrilled at the same time.

The parking lot was very crowded and he had a hard time finding a spot. He strutted in and Joe was at the register. "Good Morning Daryl," he said instantly recognizing him.

"Hey." Daryl looked around and saw that most of the booths and tables were taken. He looked at his watch then he remembered he didn't have one anymore, so he checked the clock on the wall. He really didn't have a lot of time and hadn't expected it to be this busy. "Busy today. Any chance for anything with Emma?"

"Not unless you want to wait a while. Only thing open is the counter right now," Joe told him.

"I'll take the counter." Damn, he really wanted to be in her section.

Joe told Daryl to help himself to any available seat at the counter. On his way over he kept an eye out for Emma, but didn't see her as he sat down. He had a cup of coffee poured before he even asked for it and the harried waitress asked what he wanted right away. He ordered the first thing that came to mind, which were pancakes.

As Daryl sipped his coffee, he kept looking around for Emma. She finally burst through the kitchen doors laden down with food. Daryl never took his eyes off of her. Even in that ugly pink uniform she looked beautiful to him.

Emma hadn't seen a breakfast rush this busy in weeks. She liked keeping busy as busy always translated into more tips. She also didn't have time to think about Daryl. He never made it back all weekend. Emma was afraid that something had happened to him, but when she saw his truck Monday night, she was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief. She was tempted to knock on his door after working an extra shift at the diner that day, but Merle drove in and she immediately changed her mind.

After delivering food to a four top, she went through her section checking on tables to see if they needed anything. The whole time she had a feeling that someone was watching her. Emma finally turned around and saw him looking at her from a stool at the counter. Daryl was back! She flashed him a smile, but then realized that she had food up. It was another twenty minutes before she had a brief second to go over to talk to him.

"You're back!" she said with a smile. "Sorry, we are crazy today. I doubt I can talk."

"That's okay. I just had to stop by…and see you," Daryl said. His heart was beating fast. "Can we get together later?"

"Sure. Damn I gotta go I have food up," she apologized. "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry. I'll stop by after work, okay?"

"Great! See ya then," Emma said rushing off to the kitchen. It was about an hour later when she was replaying their conversation in her head did she realize that she wasn't going to be home tonight. She worked at the bar on Tuesday nights. "Damn it," she thought. "Now I can't see Daryl and I forgot to tell him." She hoped to catch him before she left for her six o'clock shift.

Daryl flew through all of the jobs that Mack handed him that day. "You in a rush today, Daryl?" Mack asked as Daryl handed in the paperwork on yet another job completed faster than normal. He knew the quality of Daryl's work so that wasn't in question.

"Ahh…Got myself a date tonight," Daryl told him.

"Good for you son," Mack said. "I bet she's a pretty one."

"She sure as hell is."

Daryl and Mack both turned as they heard a car pull up out outside. It was four thirty and they didn't typically get much business this late in the day. They walked out to the open garage bay door and saw an expensive import that had water spewing out from underneath. Daryl's first thought was the water pump blew.

He let Mack talk to the guy, but hoped that he didn't want it done today. That was job was an easy two hour job if he didn't encounter any problems. "Not today, please not today," he prayed.

Mack finally walked over to him. "I know you got plans, but he will pay double to get it down now. Plus, he's willing to slip you an extra hundred."

Daryl knew he couldn't say no. He owed Mack for taking a chance on hiring him, plus he could also use that extra hundred. He'd do it. Daryl looked at the car again and realized the guy had plenty of money. He hadn't worked on a Porsche before, but a car was a car. "I'll do it," he told Mack. His boss told him he'd give him a hand and went out to tell the car owner.

The first thing Daryl was going to do when he saw Emma was get her phone number. He was frustrated by not being able to get in touch with her. Mack signaled him to come over and they pushed the car inside and began the process of changing out the water pump.

It was almost six and Emma had to leave for the bar. Daryl still hadn't come home yet and she wanted to tell him that she was working that night. She penned a quick note and decided to tape it to his door. She pulled out and headed off towards the bar and never saw the gust of wind that ripped the note off the door and it fluttered away.

Daryl got home a hundred bucks richer and flew into his parking spot. Merle was home, but Emma wasn't. "Where the hell was she?" he wondered. He figured he'd use some of the money he earned today and take her out somewhere, like on a real date. His first.

Merle was watching the TV and drinking a beer. Daryl wondered where the hell the beer came from, since it wasn't there yesterday. He also wondered where Merle was getting his money from, since he didn't have a job that paid that he knew of. Daryl ignored his brother and headed to his room. He stripped off his dirty clothes from work and took a shower. He hated that his nails looked so dirty from the car grease and no matter how hard he tried they were not coming clean.

He dressed in clean jeans and a button-down shirt without sleeves, before looking out the window again for Emma. She still wasn't home. She knew he was coming over tonight, so he wondered where she was. He wasn't going to hide out in his room, so he headed to the kitchen and opened the fridge. It was completely empty.

"You still got your panties in a bunch, little brother?" Merle didn't have any idea what had crawled up Daryl's ass. So he had to go and pick him up, what was the big fuckin' deal? He was the one that spent three nights in jail, not Daryl.

Daryl took a deep breath. He didn't want to be angry when he met up with Emma. "Man, you have no idea how bad you fucked up my weekend and it cost me all the cash I had, plus my damn watch. When are you gonna pay me back?"

Merle ignored the question. "I spent three nights in jail, bro not you."

"Because you're an idiot that's why you went to jail. At least you had a bed and meals, I had the truck to sleep in and no food, because I needed every penny to pay your fuckin' fine. When am I getting it back?" he asked again gritting his teeth.

"Speaking of money, I need your share of the rent for next week."

"Last time I gave you my share of the rent you spent it. No fuckin' way. I'll pay my two hundred directly," Daryl told him. Merle wasn't going to steal his rent money again. He liked living here.

"It's four hundred bro," Merle said taking a swig of beer.

"No. I owe half of the rent and rent is four hundred so I owe two." Daryl did not have a good feeling about this.

Merle sat up and turned to Daryl . "Rent is Eight hundred, my job brings it down to four hundred and that's my half. You owe the other four hundred."

Daryl was shocked. "Are you fucking kidding me? Your job? You want credit for all the repair work I do for you? No man, No fuckin' way! Two hundred is what I pay and that's it." Daryl started to pace the room, his anger was boiling over. His brother was cheating him, after all he had done for him this weekend, and he had the nerve to try cheat him.

He walked over to the couch where Merle was still reclining. Even his posture pissed Daryl off. "How the fuck did I end up with a brother like you? All my life I've picked up after your screw ups, listened to you put me down every chance you got and spend my money like it was yours. When was the last time you got a real job? I don t even want to know where you get the money you spend on booze and shit, I know it ain't legal, but you need to fuckin' grow up man."

Merle did not like what Daryl was saying to him. How dare this punk ass kid tell him to grow up? Hadn't he been taking care of his brother his entire life? Merle stood up his face red with fury, his hands clenched into tight fists. "Listen to me little brother, don't you ever fuckin' talk to me that way unless you want your ass beat down good. I've let you follow me like a fuckin' puppy your whole worthless life. You owe me goddamn it!"

Merle took a step towards Daryl, but Daryl didn't back down. Daryl felt like he was sucker punched. His eyes were dark and angry, when he stared into Merle's blood shot ones. "You're no better than our old man," he told his brother, his tone hard and cold.

Daryl grabbed his keys of the counter and walked out of the trailer. If he stayed, they would come to blows and he just couldn't deal with that now. He had to get away from Merle, before they said or did something that there was no turning back from.

Emma's car was still gone and that pissed him off even more. They had made plans and she stood him up. " _Fuck her_ ," he thought. " _Fuck everyone_!" He drove out of the park and headed to town. He didn't have a destination in mind, he just knew he had to get away from his brother for a while.

Everything he saw passed by him in a blur, until one sign caught his eye, The Devil's Brew. Now was the perfect time to get drunk. He pulled into their parking lot and headed for the door as fast as he could. A couple shots and a lot of beer would make forget how everyone in his life always disappointed him. Why should today be any different? He planned on the alcohol helping him forget how much he hated his life.

* * *

A/N - I hope all the new readers are enjoying GONE. Thank you for all of the reviews and comments.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Daryl looked around the room as he made his way to the bar. It was his first time here and he was happy that it wasn't a dive. It actually looked pretty decent. It wasn't that crowded, but it was also only a Tuesday night. He grabbed a bar stool that gave him plenty of room away from the next guy. The bartender was a blonde that looked to be in her sixties and probably had been tending bar her entire life.

She smiled at him and put a napkin down in front of him. "What can I get you Sugar?"

"Give me a shot of Jack and whatever you have on tap. I don't care what," he told her.

Sally had been working in bars for years. She could spot someone looking to drink away their troubles in an instant. The guy who just sat down was definitely one of those. She poured the shot and beer and placed it down in front of her new customer. "First time here?" she asked.

"Yep." Daryl took the shot and threw it back. He welcomed the burn from it. "Another."

Sally took the bottle and poured him another. "I'm Sally, sugar, what's your name?"

"Daryl." He wasn't in the mood to talk. He just wanted to drink and wallow in his misery.

"Well you need anything else, you just flag me down. We also have some awesome burgers in case you get hungry," Sally told him. She could tell he didn't want to chat, so she would just keep an eye on him. He was a good looking guy, a little rough around the edges, but there was an innate sadness about him. She had a soft spot for guys like him.

Daryl drank down the second shot and placed the glass upside down on the bar. He then took a sip of his beer and just stared blankly down in it. He replayed his life through a silent movie that only he saw and wondered if he hadn't stayed with Merle all these years if it would have turned out different…better. Maybe he should just collect his things and move on start a new life by himself, but that didn't even sound good to him. He hated his life, but he had no idea what to do about it.

"Daryl?"

He turned at the sound of his name and was surprised to see Emma. She stood him up to go to a bar?

"What are you doing here?" they both asked at the same time.

"I'm working"

"Drinkin'"

Since when did Emma work in a bar? She waitressed at the diner. Daryl was completely confused. "Emma, you work at the diner. Since when do you work here?" he asked.

"I've worked here for a two years, Daryl. I work both places. You didn't know that?" Emma thought that Daryl knew. What about her note?

"You never told me that you worked here, only at the diner. How would I know?"

"Daryl, the very first night I met you I was dressed to come here. Just like I am now and I told you I was late for work. I though you saw the bar's name on my…shirt." Emma realized that she almost said 'on my boobs'. "I left you a note on your door today."

He realized that she was wearing that same tight t-shirt that she was on the first night and the short skirt. He had just never put two and two together. She so did not belong in this bar. "You mentioned a note. I never got one."

"After you left the diner, I realized that it was Tuesday and I work here Tuesdays and Thursdays. I didn't want you to think I stood you up." When Daryl looked down Emma realized that he had indeed thought that. "Oh my God, you did. I am so sorry." Emma heard her name called and she needed to go check on a table. "Damn, I gotta go. I'll be back."

Daryl watched Emma head over to a table of four guys. Without even hearing what they were saying he knew they were flirting with her. He was instantly jealous even though all she did was smile back. She was his…sorta. He finished his beer while waiting for Emma to come back.

Sally caught his eye and he nodded that he wanted another beer. He would slow with this one down. He already felt the shots that he had done when he first came in. Sally refilled his beer, but didn't leave.

"So you know our Emma?" she asked while polishing a glass. She didn't miss that when Emma started talking to Daryl how his face softened and he no longer looked as angry.

"Yep," he answered her. Daryl could tell that Sally was simply being friendly and since he had talked to Emma, a lot of his anger had dissipated. He didn't need to keep up the hard ass attitude. He gave her a half smile that just lifted the corner of his mouth. "We're friends. Kept missing meeting up with her this weekend. I didn't know she worked here, so it was a surprise seeing her. Glad I stopped by."

"Emma's a good one. I saw her face light up when she saw you. She needs someone she can rely on, you going to be that guy Daryl?" Sally was a good judge of character. All her years behind a bar taught he to be able to pick out the ones that were trouble. Daryl wasn't one of those.

"I sure as hell hope so Sally," Daryl told her. It didn't bother him that she was essentially butting into his business with Emma. He saw it as Sally looking out for Emma and he appreciated that.

"In that case, next beer's on me," she said with a wink.

Emma was able to get back to Daryl finally after serving food to a couple of tables and replacing empty drinks. "What happened this weekend?" she asked Daryl.

"It was a fuckin' nightmare" he said rolling his eyes. "Too long a story to tell you here. Hey, when do you get off?"

"When we close. Somewhere between 12 and one."

"How do you handle working in the morning then?" he asked. "You must be exhausted."

Emma gave him a big smile. "I always have off on Wednesdays, so it's not a problem."

"I got off tomorrow too. Would it be okay, if I hung around here until you got off and we could go back and talk afterwards?" Daryl was anxious to spend time with Emma and this would also keep him away from his brother. "I got a lot to tell you."

"Sure. I'd love that." Emma could not believe that he was here. She had been thinking about him non-stop for days and out of the blue he shows up at The Brew. She could not wait for her shift to be over. At least when it slowed down later, she would be able to hang with him.

The front door opened and a bunch of people walked in. It was time to go back to work. Daryl knew she had to go, so he grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. They held hands for a brief moment before Emma headed off to great the newcomers.

With a smile, Daryl waved Sally over. "Think I'm gonna take you up on that cheeseburger. Guess I'm gonna be here a while."

"Good," Sally said as she went to put his order into the kitchen.

It wasn't until twelve thirty that Emma was finally done. The small crowd thinned out later on so Emma was able to spend some time sitting with Daryl. So while she counted out her tips and got that sorted out, Daryl got up off the bar stool and stretched. It was a long night, but he would do it again and he planned to.

"I'm ready," Emma told him with her purse in hand. "Let's get outta here."

Daryl was more than ready to go. He followed Emma out to the parking lot and walked her over to her car. Once she was safely settled, he then headed to his and they drove back to the trailer park. Daryl parked in his spot. He could see the lights were still on inside, but he headed straight to Emma's.

"Do you mind if I change clothes?" she asked.

"Go right ahead," he told her as he sat down on the couch.

Emma left the room and Daryl put his head back on the sofa. Finally! He was going to be able to spend time with Emma and see where this could go. He never would have thought that he wanted to have any type of relationship with a woman. A quickie in a parking lot or a couple of hours at their place was all he ever did. He didn't stay overnight or see them again. He had never had a positive relationship in his life…ever, so he had no reason to believe one could ever exist. Until now. He wanted one now with Emma.

She emerged from the bedroom wearing jeans and a casual shirt and no shoes. Daryl immediately felt his body react to her. He sat up quickly and put his hand in his lap to cover his growing erection. " _Damn it_ ," he told himself. Luckily Emma went into the kitchen to get them both something to drink, so he had time to get his body to calm down.

Daryl took the soda that Emma handed him and took a sip as she sat down next to him. "So, tell me what happened this weekend," she said, as she got comfortable on the sofa.

"What a fuckin' mess," Daryl told her and proceeded to tell her how everything kept going from bad to worse all weekend. Emma could not believe everything he went through to get his brother out of jail. It was a sad that Daryl had to go through that.

"I can't believe you had to sell your watch. Oh Daryl, I wish I knew. I could have helped you," Emma offered.

"Emma, I would never ask you for money. That wasn't an option, but I did want to talk to you… but I don't have your number. You gotta give it to me. What is it?" They exchanged phone numbers and automatically programed them into their cell phones. Daryl felt much better having it and so did Emma.

"What made you come into The Brew tonight? I haven't seen you in there before," Emma asked.

"What else… Merle. He's trying to cheat me on the rent and I won't stand for it. I've had it with him walking all over me all the time. Spending my money like it's his, and when I told him no, he got angry and I was sure he was going to hit me, so I left. He's turning into our old man who never had a nice thing to say to us and beat us more often than not." Daryl hadn't meant to say that to Emma. He never told anyone about his father or mentioned the abuse he received. It just came out.

"Don't parent's suck?" Emma sighed. "Some people should never be allowed to have kids."

Daryl looked at Emma and saw sadness in her eyes. "What you telling me?"

"I didn't have good parents either. I went into foster care when I was three because my parents were too busy getting high to care for me. I aged out at eighteen and looked for them or at least my Mom. I found out she OD'd not long after I was taken away. I've been on my own my whole life." Emma wasn't proud of her background, but she didn't let it shape her. She told Daryl what little she knew of her life with her parents and that came from social service documents. She was too little to remember. She had been living in filthy conditions, no food and drugs and needles just lying out in the open. It was a miracle that she lived through that.

Daryl felt a new understanding come between them. They both shared a horrible childhood and as much as he hated to admit it, at least he had Merle. He hadn't been completely alone. Since Emma had shared her deep dark secrets, Daryl felt more comfortable to tell her more of his life. He told her about hen his mother died in the fire she unfortunately caused, but she never was a loving woman. Daryl grew up not knowing what any type of affection was. He spoke of his father's verbal abuse that increased year after year and how it turned physical as he got older. He didn't tell her of the scars on his back. He wasn't ready for that yet.

Emma was shocked when Daryl told her that when he was around ten years old he had gotten lost in the woods for nine days. No one looked for him. No one cared that he was gone. He had to find his way home on his own. Her heart went out to that little forgotten boy. It seemed they both survived parents that should never have reproduced.

Daryl had his arm along the back of the sofa cushions. Emma scooted next to him and laid her head on his shoulder and Daryl wrapped his arm around her. They stayed that way for a while, just being together until Emma started yawning. Daryl looked around for a clock and saw that it was after three in the morning.

"I should go," Daryl said regretfully. He didn't want to leave her. "It's late." He knew he should go, it was the right thing to do, but she felt so good against him with her head resting on him. He had yet to kiss her again and he wanted to so badly.

Emma turned her face to look up at him. Her green eyes filled with fatigue and happiness. "No," she said softly. "Don't go. Stay the night…please."

Daryl pressed his lips to hers. He wasn't going anywhere….anytime soon.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Daryl touched his lips to Emma's and that gentle kiss sent a surge of sparks flying through them. Any other time Daryl would have just gone for it and fucked her right there on the couch and then left, but he couldn't do that to Emma. She wasn't a cheap lay or an easy way to get his rocks off, she was special and he was going to treat he that way, even though he had no idea what he was doing. This was all new to him.

Emma pulled back first from the kiss. A shy smile covered her beautiful face.

Daryl was going to be a gentleman. She was exhausted after working both at the diner and at the bar. He was not going to take advantage of her this way no matter how bad his dick wanted to. He was going to think with his head and his heart this time.

"I don't want to go either, but how about I sleep on the sofa. You're tired and it's real late and …and," he tried to tell her. How could he tell her that he wanted her, but not now, without sounding stupid? Now as not the right time. Maybe tomorrow or after.

Emma was glad that Daryl wanted to stay with her, but she was about to fall sleep right there she was so tired. All she wanted was for him to hold her while she slept, nothing more. He certainly made her heart race and her body tingle out of control, but she wanted to be able to enjoy their first time together. It touched her that he volunteered to sleep on her small sofa. He would never fit, but it was so sweet of him to offer.

"Daryl, you're not sleeping on the sofa, but I'm not having sex with you either." Daryl's eyebrows rose at her bluntness. "I'm so exhausted that I'm saying stuff I normally don't say. Please just come to bed with me and sleep next to me. I just want you there," she explained. "Okay?"

Daryl got it. There were both thinking the same thing. He stood up and extended a hand to her. "Let's go. That's fine with me," he told her as the corner of his mouth curled up into a small smile.

Emma led the way into her bedroom and turned to Daryl. "I'm going to change into something more comfortable to sleep in than jeans. I have an old pair of baggy sweat pants that should fit you. Okay?"

"Yeah."

Emma could hear the hesitation in his voice. She walked over to her dresser and rummage through a drawer until she found the sweats. She handed them to Daryl. "These are mine, no one else's. Sometimes I like to relax around here in just really baggy clothes, but these are really big on me so they should fit you."

Daryl relaxed. "No problem."

Emma returned to searching through her dresser for something for her to wear. Tonight wasn't a night to be sexy, but she wasn't going for the granny look either. She pulled a top and shorts from the drawer. These would do. "I'll change in the bathroom and you'll be okay here?"

Daryl flashed her a smile, "Go change, I'm fine."

Emma gave him a peck on the lips and headed down the hall to the small bathroom. Daryl watched her walk away and he couldn't help but notice how her ass filled her jeans. Perfection. Suddenly he was thinking with his dick again as it started to get hard. "Whoa!" he tried to tell himself. "Not now, damn it not now."

As he took off his boots and jeans, he thought of his brother. He figured that was a sure fire way to help rid of the fuckin' hard on he had growing and luckily it did help. By the time Emma returned he was dressed in the sweats she had given him and they fit him fine, plus his erection was gone …for now.

When Daryl saw how she was dressed, he stared to immediately think of Merle again. She just wore loose baggy shorts and a spaghetti strap top. It was the fact that she was braless was what got to him.

Emma had large breasts, but they suited her. His fingers ached to touch them, but he knew he couldn't. She jiggled when she walked and with her nipples clearly poking out, he was having the worst time controlling himself.

The tension in the room escalated and they both become shy with each other.

" _Maybe this top wasn't a good idea_ ," she thought, but she had nothing else with her in the bathroom that would have worked. At this point she was just too tired to care that her damn nipples were showing. As she pulled back the covers on the bed, she glanced at Daryl and saw that he had an erection. It made her feel good that she had that effect on him.

She crawled in and smiled at him to join her. Daryl had given up trying to hide his erection as he tented in the sweats. He sat down on the bed and was ready to slide under the covers when Emma asked him if he was going to take his shirt off.

Suddenly he decided that he didn't care if she saw his back, she would sooner or later anyway. As he started to unbutton the shirt, she turned the bedside light off, leaving them in the dim light left over from the moon. He was happy that she wouldn't see the scars in the dark now.

Daryl tossed his shirt aside and slipped under the covers. This was a first for him, so he did what he felt was right. He scooted up against Emma so he could wrap his arm around her as they slept. He knew she could feel his hard dick pressing against her. Eventually it should calm down he hoped, but when Emma wiggled against him, it went from hard to rock solid.

"You're not playing fair," he growled.

"Oops...sorry," she giggled. A huge yawn overtook her suddenly. The softness of the bed and the comfort she felt being in his arms was too much for her tired body to handle. Just as she drifted off to sleep she whispered, "Tomorrow."

Daryl felt her fall right asleep. Oh there definitely would be a tomorrow and many more he hoped. Having Emma in his arms right now was something he never wanted to lose. He had been waiting for her his entire life and never realized it…until now. Daryl closed his eyes and sleep over took him too.

When Daryl woke up to a sun filed room two thoughts instantly popped into his head. I have a boner and its tomorrow. Emma was still sound asleep and tucked up against him. Daryl lay there a while thinking how his life had changed in an instant. One minute he was hating everyone and everything in his life and the next Emma turned that all around. They hadn't talked about what they were doing, but did people do that he wondered or was it an unspoken agreement? He wanted Emma, not just to have sex with, even though he was sure that would be awesome, but as someone he could talk to, hang around with and he wouldn't be alone again.

Their backgrounds were more similar than he could have hoped. He finally had someone that understood what he had gone through as kid, and just not pity him. She got him and usually no one did.

She was also gorgeous and he knew she had no idea how beautiful she was. How could she want him? He never considered himself good-looking. He was just a redneck mechanic from the mountains of north Georgia. It had taken him more years than it should have to get his head somewhat on straight. Hanging with Merle sure hadn't helped him, in fact it mostly likely held him back. Daryl knew right then that his brother was toxic to him. He needed to step back away from Merle a bit or risk losing everything he had – a job he liked and a girl he was falling hard for.

Emma moaned lightly in his embrace as she slowly came awake. Her sleepy eyes fluttered open and he caressed her cheek with his fingers.

"Mornin' " she whispered.

"Sleep well?" he asked.

"The best," she sighed. "Best sleep ever."

Emma rolled over so she was facing Daryl. Her hair was a rumpled mess and her face was still drowsy, but he had never seen her looking more beautiful. "I want you to know that this was a first for me," he told her.

What sleeping with a girl and not have sex?"

"Well yeah, that too, but I've never spent the night with a girl before. Woken up in the same bed," he admitted.

Emma looked at him in surprise. "You've never spent the night with anyone before? Why not?" Then Emma got a funny feeling, "You're not telling me that you're still a…"

She didn't finish before he interrupted her. "No!" he said embarrassed. "Not that. Of course I've fu…had sex. Just never stayed the night, never wanted to…until now."

"How old are you Daryl?" Emma knew Daryl had no reason to lie to her, but she couldn't believe that he never spent the night with anyone. Everyone did at some point, but this gave her the opportunity to ask him his age. She didn't have any idea.

"Thirty-seven, what 'bout you?" he asked. He hoped that she wasn't really young.

"Twenty-nine," Emma told him. "Think I'm too young for you?"

"Hell no," said Daryl. "Kinda think it's just fine. I was crazy when I was younger, and I got all that outta me now. You probably would have hated me back then."

"Oh I'm not so sure about that," Emma purred. "I always did have a soft spot for bad boys."

He raised his hand to tuck her hair behind her ear, and the light touch of his fingertips on her skin caused Emma's pulse to race. "I'm still a bad boy," he said into her ear, his voice low and sexy.

Daryl wanted Emma so bad right then. He held her body next to his all night long and since he woke up he wanted to touch her everywhere, but he didn't. He watched her sleep instead. Daryl ached to see her breasts, to touch and taste them. They were the reason he had a hard on since he woke up. They were right in front of him, about to fall out of her shirt. He'd start drooling if he didn't watch it.

"Good," was all Emma could say. She wanted his hands on her, all over her, but she was too shy to ask. Instead she pressed herself up against him so he felt her breasts and she was thrilled to feel his erection against her pelvis.

Daryl pulled her even tighter to him and kissed her deeply. The kiss went on and on and on. They explored each other's taste and lips. Mouths traveled to caress necks, faces and shoulders each taking a turn to explore the other.

Emma ran her hands over Daryl bare back and felt the scars, but they didn't register what they were. Daryl put his hand under her shirt and felt the soft skin of her back. He hesitated before he moved to touch her breast. He was unsure if that as the right move, so he took it slowly and used his thumb to stroke just the side. He had no idea that his gentle touch was driving Emma crazy.

She was used to men being so eager to touch them that she always felt lost. They wanted her breasts more than then wanted her. Daryl wasn't pawing at her or ripping her shirt off, he was instead taking it slow and teasing her unmercifully. Emma loved it.

In a moment of unusual boldness, she grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head. She felt in control for a change and her body demanded his touch.

Daryl took a moment to look down at her breasts. She was offering them to him and he was defenseless to say no. He had never wanted a woman as bad as he did Emma. He had been horny before, but nothing like this. He realized for the first time he simply didn't wasn't to just fuck her, he wanted to touch her, taste her and learn everything about her amazing body.

He kissed her again. It was deep, passionate and hungry. Emma matched his desire with her own. Daryl finally moved his hand placing it over her breast. It easily filled his large hand. He squeezed and then continued to massage it, before playing with her already erect nipples. Emma was moaning at his touch. His rock hard dick was pressing against her and it took all of his will power not to rip his sweats off and her shorts so he could slam into her. He couldn't do that to here. She deserved more and he wanted to give it to her. Daryl was learning a he went along. Slow and romantic was not his style. He had been more of a wham bam type of guy. He was usually in it for himself and not the skank under him.

Emma ground her hips into Daryl's loving the feel of him. His hand was gentle and loving on her breast. He was exciting her with every touch. She felt his lips leave her mouth and even though she ached to have them return, she sent up silent prayers that he was going to take her in his mouth.

His lips traveled lower from her cheek to her chin to her neck to her collar bone until finally she felt them on her breast. "Oh God, " she moaned as electric shocks flowed through her. His mouth was magical.

Daryl became a little bit more aggressive as he rolled Emma onto her back so he could use his mouth on one of her breasts and his hand on the other. " _Her tits are fuckin' unbelievable_ ," he thought. " _I'm going to want to touch them all the time and suck 'em like…_ "

A loud banging came from the other room and Daryl heard someone call out.

Daryl sat up and said "What the fuck?"

"I think someone's at the door," Emma said. "I have no idea who that could be."

"Ignore 'em," Daryl said as his mouth latched back onto her.

Emma just moaned her agreement, until they both heard, "Daryl, I know you're in there. C'mon man I need your help."

"Fuckin' Merle!" he growled. "We're ignoring him."

The more they tried to ignore him, the louder he knocked and called out for Daryl. The mood was completely shot. Daryl got out of bed cursing his brother and stormed to the front door. Emma stayed in bed watching him leave and this was when she got a good look at his back. First, she saw the tattoos and then she saw the scars. She was shocked, but then she got really angry. She knew without a doubt they had come from his father. Her poor Daryl.

Daryl yanked open the door. "What the fuck do you want?"

Merle leaned against the door frame an evil smirk on his face. "Knew you had a hard on for our hot little neighbor. Never expected you to act on it. I bet she's a wild one. Hmmm, hmmm."

"Shut up, asshole. What do you want and how did you find me?" Daryl could not believe that his brother was again fucking up his time with Emma…again.

"I saw the truck pull in last night and when I looked out the window I saw you and sugar tits going into her place. Way to go baby brother didn't think you had it in you to go for a piece of ass like that." Merle just kept smiling that creepy evil smile of his and Daryl just wanted to punch him in the mouth.

Daryl leaned in close so he was practically nose to nose with his brother. "I'm only going to tell you this once. You watch you fuckin' mouth when you talk about Emma. She isn't one of the skanks that you pick up. She is a good, decent person and she is my girlfriend. Don't ever disrespect her again. Got that, bro?"

Emma could hear their raised voices from where she was in the bedroom. Merle just confirmed he was the jerk she thought he was, but Daryl had just called her is girlfriend. That made her heart soar. Emma got out of bed, quickly put her shirt back on and did a little dance of joy. This was no one time thing, he really wanted to be with her all the time.

"Take it easy, take it easy. I didn't know you were that into her, bro. It's cool." Merle looked at Daryl's half-dressed state. "Hate to interrupt you finally getting laid, but the bitch in #34 dropped her damn ring down the drain and I can't get it. I need your help."

"She can wait," Daryl said taking a step back so he could go back inside.

"C'mon, it won't take long. I made her wait until this morning as it was. Okay?"

Daryl knew the easiest thing would be just to go, do it and get it out if the way, then he could get back to Emma. "If this takes longer than half an hour, I'm leavin', "he told Merle. "Lemme get dressed." Daryl turned and stepped into the trailer, closing the door on his brother. Merle had the worst timing ever.

The minute he saw Emma in the kitchen, he started to apologize. "I'm sorry. I gotta go."

She put her hand on his arm and gave him a big smile. "I know. I heard. It's okay, Daryl. Will you come back when you're done?" Emma wanted to spend as much time with him as possible. They had so much to learn about each other and she couldn't wait.

"Hell yeah, I'll be back as soon as I can." Daryl was pissed that he had to leave he, but he also never felt happier. Emma was his. Why she wanted a poor redneck mechanic, he had no idea, but thank fuckin' God she did.

Daryl was never a big smiler. He rarely had anything to smile or be happy about, until now. Emma made him happier than he ever thought possible. He found he was smiling more than he ever did his whole life.

He reached out and pulled Emma against him. His normal shyness around woman disappeared when he was with her. Daryl lowered his mouth to hers and the intensity they had going on in bed, was instantly reignited. The kiss was harder than he intended, but his anger had turned into passion. Finally, they both broke apart out of breath. Daryl leaned his forehead against Emma's. "I don't wanna go, but I'll be back as soon as I can," he panted. "I need to pick up condoms too."

Emma felt his erection pressing up against her and she pushed her hips against his. "I'm on the pill, we're okay. I'll be waiting," she replied her voice husky.

"Fuck Emma. You are making it hard to go."

She laughed at him. "Go. The sooner you get back…"

Daryl smiled at her and ran off to the bedroom to get dressed. He was back within a minute with his pants on, shirt unbuttoned and his boots untied. He gave Emma a quick kiss and ran out the door.

* * *

 **A/N- Just want to thank jeanf, imlovinfanfic and Miss October 13 for all their recent reviews/comments. I love that you are so getting into the story. Thanks also to all the new people following Suddenly...Gone. See ya all again on Sunday!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

As usual the job took longer than it should have. The whole time Daryl was fighting with the drain under the small bathroom sink, Merle was flirting with Krista the tenant. Daryl shook his head as he heard them agree to meet up at a bar later tonight. He didn't understand how women could fall for Merle's line of crap.

When he was done, he handed the inexpensive ring back to its owner, said his goodbyes and left. He was ready to get back to Emma. His Emma.

Merle hurried after him. "While we're out, could you look at a few other things for me?" he asked.

"No."

"C'mon, bro. We won't get credit for the rent if we don't do more work around here," Merle told him.

"If we don't do more work?" Daryl said sarcastically. "This job is yours not mine. I've already done a half dozen jobs here this week, what have you done?" Daryl was putting his tools in the back of his truck. He knew they needed the rent credit from the maintenance job in order to afford the monthly rent. " _Did Merle do anything around here_ ," he wondered.

Daryl wanted to say no, but he didn't. They needed the four hundred dollars that the job contributed towards the rent. He rested both hands on the side of the pickup and took a deep breath. "What else is there?"

Merle laughed, "Knew I could count on you little brother."

Daryl shook his head and got into the truck and he and Merle drove to the next job.

Four hours late they finished. Daryl pulled the truck into his spot in front of their trailer. Emma's car was still there. Daryl was hungry, but he knew they had no food left. He had missed both breakfast and lunch today. He decided to shower first and then check in with Emma.

Daryl took a long hot shower and it felt good. He also did something he hadn't done in a very long time, he shaved…well sort of. He cleaned up his face so the scruff on his cheeks and neck was gone. He kept everything else. He looked himself over in the mirror and thought he looked pretty good for a change.

Dressed in his best jeans and shirt, Daryl headed over to Emma's. Even though it was only mid-afternoon he didn't want to come back to change his clothes. He wanted to take her out to dinner that night. The money he had gotten from fixing the Porsche was still burning a hole in his pocket.

He knocked on Emma's door which she quickly opened with a smile. "Hey, come on in."

"Sorry, I took so long. We ended up having to do a couple of repairs around the park. I hadda do them as it helps with the rent." Daryl explained as he walked into the living room. Emma just melted right into his arms and they stayed that way for a couple of minutes. She tilted her head back and looked into his blue eyes.

"Missed you," she said smiling up at him. Then she noticed the scruff on his cheeks was gone. "Hey, you shaved."

"Missed you too. Yeah, I was starting to look like a bum. Just cleaned it up a bit."

Emma turned his face so she could see it better. "I didn't mind it before, not at all, but this does look really good. I may have to fight all the women off now trying to get to you," she told him with a wink.

"Yeah, right," he said rolling his eyes. "I ain't anything special to look at. Still surprised that you think so."

"Are you serious?" Emma asked him completely surprised. "Daryl you are really good looking. I mean when I saw you the day you fixed my tires I almost couldn't talk because I thought you were so hot." She thought was that Daryl was looking at her like she was crazy. "I'm dead serious. When you came by the diner to pick me up that day, my friend Cassie was there and she completely agreed. Face it Daryl, you're a hot guy," she teased him. It was the truth.

Daryl desperately wanted to change the topic, so he brought up something he had been worrying about. "Still don't agree, but hey, I gotta tell you sumthin'." Daryl took Emma by the hand and they sat down on her sofa. He could see that she looked worried and he felt bad. "No, nothin's wrong Em. This whole thing is new to me – wanting to spend time with you, missing you and …you being my girlfriend. I mean I hope you want to. Shit…" he said running his hand through his hair in embarrassment. "I never done this before, never wanted to, but I can't not want to do this with you. I'm gonna screw up. I know I will, as I ain't never had a girlfriend before, but you'll let me know when I do, right?" Daryl took a deep breath. That was so hard for him to say, but he needed Emma to know what to expect from him.

He turned and looked at Emma and she was looking at him with her beautiful smile. "Don't take this wrong, but you are so damn adorable." She took his hand in hers. "First, yes, I will be your girlfriend. I want that more than anything. The key to any relationship is communication. As long as we talk to each other, we'll be fine. You're gonna find out that I'm easy."

Emma realized how that sounded and immediately turned red. "Wait! That didn't come out right. Easy as in not high maintenance, but not easy as...well you know." Here she was trying to make Daryl feel more confident about them and she was telling him she was easy. "Good Lord, Emma!" She said to herself.

Daryl laughed. They made a great pair. He was still surprised that this was working between them. He finally had a girlfriend and at thirty-seven that was fucking ridiculous, but he never met anyone that made him feel this way. His choices in hook ups in the past were really bad since not one of them ever came close to making him want to see them again. With Emma, he never wanted to leave her side.

"I know what you mean," he told her with a smirk. He kissed her and found that each time it felt more and more natural to do so. "So what do you want to do this afternoon?" he asked. "I want to take you out to dinner tonight, your choice of place, but what do you want to do now?

"Oh Daryl, you don't have to take me out. We could eat here," she replied. Emma didn't want him spending his hard earned money just to take her out. She was just as comfortable staying at home.

"I know I don't have to… I want to. I was late coming home yesterday because we did a last minute emergency job on a Porsche. The guy slide me a hundred for staying and doing the job. You choose the place and we'll eat there tonight, okay?" Daryl wanted to spend the money on her. He didn't know much, but he knew that when you dated someone you took them out. He wanted Emma to feel special.

"Okay, fine," she said rolling her twinkling eyes. "If you want to take me out to dinner, I'll just have to suffer through it."

They laughed together and kissed again. Daryl never wanted to stop kissing her, but he was hoping to save that for later. He broke the kiss and again asked her what she wanted to do that afternoon. Together they threw out a few ideas and ended up settling on going for drive in his truck.

Emma was able to sit right next to Daryl as his truck was so old that it had a bench style front seat, not bucket seats the way vehicles did now. He held her hand the entire drive as she showed him around the area. The ended up with an early dinner as Daryl was hungry from not eating all day at a casual restaurant that Emma knew. She wasn't comfortable eating in a fancy place and she guessed that Daryl wouldn't be either.

The sun had gone down by the time they headed home. They both were a bit quiet on the ride back, each lost in their own thoughts about each other. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, but one of two people that were relaxed together. Daryl had never been this comfortable around a woman before. He wasn't tongue tied or nervous anymore. He knew that Emma got who he was.

The anticipation of what would most likely happen tonight also hung in the air. If Merle hadn't interrupted them that morning they both knew they would have had sex. That was the only barrier they had left to cross. It worried Daryl more than Emma. He was used to taking care of his own needs and not caring about anything else. Could he do it? Would it be enough?

Daryl parked the truck and they both got out and headed to Emma's. When they got inside Emma suggested they either watch a movie or the TV. Daryl looked through the handful of movies she had saw they were all really chick flicks. None appealed to him, so he suggested the TV. After flipping through the channels they found a show they both liked and Emma snuggled up next to Daryl to watch it.

They talked about the show and the next one after that as the night wore on. It was getting closer to the time when they would be going to bed. Daryl assumed he was staying over, but suddenly he wondered if he was wrong. She may want him to go home.

It was like they were on the same wave length as suddenly Emma looked up at him with her big green eyes and said, "Kiss me." Daryl complied instantly. His woman wanted a kiss, he was certainly not going to say no, when he was dying for one too.

When their lips came together they immediately forgot about the show on the TV. Closed lips, soon turned to open and their tongues quickly danced with each other. Every few minutes when they needed to take a breath, one would explore the other's face or neck or anything else their lips could find.

Emma ended up practically sitting in Daryl's lap as the kisses intensified. She could feel his erection under her and it thrilled her that he wanted her. His hand moved up under her shirt and caressed her back. The touch of his fingers on her skin sent waves of desire flowing through her. Emma wondered how she would be able to handle it when he actually touched her breast again or more. She never had a guy get her this worked up this easily before.

Daryl loved the feel of the smooth skin as his hand explored her back. It was such as contradiction as his own was so mangled. Eventually he used his other hand to unclasp her bra and immediately both of their breathing became ragged. It was time to take their relationship to the next level.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

"Maybe we should go…" was all Daryl got out before Emma answered quickly, "Yes…the bedroom."

Emma got up off Daryl's lap and together they went into her room. Daryl swore a silent vow that no matter what he wasn't going to let anything interrupt them this time. He drew Emma back into his arms as they stood next to the bed. He just held onto her for a little bit, smiling as he felt her heart beating rapidly in her chest. His was doing the same.

Emma brought her hands up between them and starting to unbutton Daryl's shirt. She pushed it off his shoulders and it fell to the floor instantly forgotten. The fingers of her left hand traced the devil tattoo on his biceps.

Her gentle touch on his arm made him want her to touch him everywhere. His light blue eyes darkened with hunger as they met her smiling ones. Daryl pushed her back towards the bed and when Emma's legs hit the edge of the mattress she stopped. Their lips met again as they couldn't get enough of tasting each other. Daryl was the one this time that pulled Emma's shirt over her head and Emma let her loose bra just slip off.

She sat down on the bed scooting backwards until she reached the pillows. Daryl followed Emma every inch, never taking his eyes off her as they both slowly lay down on the bed. Their lips touched, their tongues clashed and Daryl's hands roamed all over her.

Daryl had never touched a body like hers before. It was sheer perfection to him. His hands were tentative at first, but then grew more confidence as he realized Emma wanted this as much as he did. He squeezed and massaged her breasts as Emma lightly moaned next to him. He took it further and rubbed her pert nipple between his fingers and Emma moaned even louder. He had never tried to be gentle with a girl before and he found he really loved it.

" _She has the best fuckin' tits I've ever seen or touched_ ," he thought to himself. " _She belongs in Playboy with this body. She has my dick so hard, it's 'bout to explode and I ain't even in her yet. Fuck_."

He let his lips travel down her body until they stopped at her breast. His eyes briefly met hers before he turned his attention back to her luscious breast. Daryl used his tongue first to taste her nipple, and then his whole mouth descended upon it. Emma arched her back as tiny little shocks flowed through entire body. All Emma could think about was that she wanted his mouth everywhere on her body.

Emma wondered what was happening to her. No one had ever made her feel this way before. Sure she had enjoyed sex before and the act of if always turned her on, but this was different. It was almost like she was on fire with all of her nerve endings were alive at the same time. It was so intense and he had barely started to touch her, what would happen when he really did? Emma wanted more, so much more from him right then, but she also did not want his mouth to leave her breast. It just felt so damn incredible.

"Like?" he asked in a deep growl.

"Oh God…yes. Don't stop…not yet," she moaned.

Hearing the desire in her voice excited Daryl even more. His mouth continued to control her left breast and he now brought his hand up to squeeze her right. Emma was practically writhing on the bed next to him. Now his hand left her breast and skimmed down her stomach to the top of her jeans. One handed he popped the button and slowly lowered the zipper.

His mouth released her breast started to travel down her body. Emma instantly felt the loss and wanted to cry out, until it registered in her lust filled brain that he was going to take her pants off. If she could have wished them instantly away she would have.

Daryl used both hands to pull her jeans off her hips and Emma raised them slightly. Soon she was left only dressed her in pale pink panties. He went to lie back next to her, when Emma laughed huskily, "Oh no. Yours need to go too."

Daryl gave her wicked smile and had his jeans off in a second. He was left in his boxers. He moved so he was half lying on her as the need to kiss her again was all he could think of.

Emma loved the feel of his skin against hers. The pressure of his hard erection against her thigh made the wetness between her legs even worse. Daryl held her face with his right hand while they kissed and used the pad of his thumb to caress her cheek. He finally moved himself so now he lay directly on top of Emma, with his hard shaft pressing against her sex. There was still the thin cloth barrier of their underwear between them, but together they started moving back and forth rubbing against each other. It wasn't long before neither of them could take it any longer.

All it took was Emma whispering the word 'please' to Daryl for then to take the final step. He rolled off her and pulled off the boxers with one hand, while Emma quickly shimmied out of her panties. They were both completely naked and they each took a moment to gaze at each other's bodies.

Daryl still saw perfection in Emma's and she saw how hard he as for her. He positioned himself over her, with the tip of his cock touching her wet mound. He hesitated for a brief moment, his inexperience with romance making him question himself. Emma spread her legs further apart and that was all the encouragement he needed. Daryl entered her slowly inch by inch, not wanted to hurt her. Emma instead thrust her hips up so he was fully inside of her.

They both gasped and froze, until he pulled out and pushed inside her again and again. Emma felt insanely good. She couldn't put together words, so all she could do was moan her response. She had never been this desperate for a man before.

"So that's how you want it," he said his voice deep with lust as he consistently plunged his dick inside of her. He never remembered being this hard before or his body so needing a release this quickly.

"Oh…yes," was all Emma could say. Her body was on fire and it demanded more. Her hips met him stroke for stroke as they moved as one. She wrapped her arms around him, and held him as tight as she could. She could hear his breathing become more ragged as he closed in on his orgasm. The friction of his body against hers kept her own passion soaring. His strokes became stronger and deeper.

"Oh God Em, I can't hold on," he groaned as spasm after spasm flowed through him. With her body already on fire Emma joined her orgasm with his. Daryl felt her convulse under him as he spilled into her. They collapsed together, spent and exhausted.

Neither of them moved for several minutes, as they lay drained. They both felt that something had changed between them. It was not a simply blending of their bodies during sex, it was a bonding between them. It was the ultimate joining of soulmates.

Daryl felt himself slip out of Emma and he rolled off her to the side. He cradled her in his strong arms until he found the energy to say a single word, "Wow."

"Yeah…wow," Emma echoed burying her head in his shoulder. "Wow."

They didn't need words to confirm that what they had just experienced was of the charts incredible. Now the act of simply laying together in each other's arms was all they needed. Took him thirty seven years, but Daryl had finally experienced what making love was and not just fucking. He wanted to do it over and over again. He just had to wait until he could get hard again, but if he could spend the entire night buried inside her he would. He wished he was twenty again.

Daryl stroked her hair for a while and then his hand gravitated down to her breast. He played with her gently until he felt Emma start to wiggle against him. She didn't see the big smile that came across his face. He had Emma turn so she faced him now. He still couldn't believe how beautiful she was and she was all his. Looking at her made his heart race and he was feeling emotions he didn't understand.

"Hey," Emma said all of a sudden. "I want to know all about your tattoos. I saw the devil on your arm and you have this tiny star on your hand, but what else do you have?"

Daryl knew something like this would eventually happen. He had been dreading it, but there was no reason to hide them anymore. "I have an 'x' right here," and he pointed to his left collar bone. "A heart here." That was on his right wrist. "Then I got two angel demons on my back." He prayed that she wouldn't want to see them.

"Oh, I want to see them!" she exclaimed.

"They're not very good. I was stupid to let a guy I knew do them when he was learning. Never get a tattoo when you're drunk," he said trying to laugh it off. He knew the bigger deal he made out of it; the worse it was going to be.

Daryl turned over so he was lying on his stomach. When Emma straddled him naked, he gulped.

Her hands traced the ink along the right side of his back and shoulder. They weren't great, but she had seen a lot worse. Then she looked the scars. She was purposely looked at the tattoo first. The raised tissue stood out paler than his skin. They crisscrossed all over his back. Emma didn't say anything at first, she simply traced them with her fingertips thinking about the pain he had to have gone through.

She did the only thing she could think of and that was to kiss each one. When she was done she slid off him and lay next to him. Emma had her head on his shoulder and she looked up at Daryl. Slowly his eyes met hers. She said one word, "Who?"

"My old man."

"Fucking bastard," she said in anger. It confirmed what she suspected that morning.

Daryl raised his eyebrows at her words. Emma never cursed. She saw his look and rolled her eyes, "No, I don't curse like you do, but I do when I'm really pissed off and I am. Parents don't do that to their children. So I have every right to be mad."

He never wanted anyone to pity him for what he lived through as a kid, but he had come to terms with it years ago. Yeah, his back embarrassed him, however there was nothing he could do about it. He did appreciate Emma being mad. She never once said "Poor Daryl," she just put the blame where it belonged, his fuckin' alcoholic old man.

Emma snuggled against Daryl. Her leg thrown over his and her fingers stroked his chest. She knew she loved him. It was fast…too fast, but there was no denying it. She had thought she had been in love before, but it was nothing like this. Daryl was her one true love and she was the happiest she had ever been.

Her hand reached up and caressed his cheek, then played with the hair in his chin. She had seen him do that countless times himself. She knew it was too soon, but she couldn't help herself. Emma looked into his blue eyes and with a shy smile said, "I love you."

Daryl was momentarily taken aback. She loved him? Was that what he was feeling? He had never known love from anyone, and he had always doubted that he would be able to love himself. Here Emma was giving it to him, was he in love with her?

Daryl realized how he thought about her all the time and when he saw her he felt completed. He knew it was a weird choice if words, but she completed him. He knew he never wanted to be away from her and the need, the desperate need to touch her, kiss her and now make love to her overwhelmed him. No one had ever come close to this with him at all, not by a long shot.

Then he knew. He was unquestionably absolutely in love with her too. He pressed his lips to hers for a gentle romantic kiss. His fingers were entangled in her long hair when he broke the kiss and rested his forehead against hers. "I love you too," he whispered. He felt the brokenness of his battered soul start to heal.

This time it was Emma who kissed Daryl, but she wasn't as tender as he was. There was more passion and fire in her kiss and Daryl responded instantly and so did his body. He was hard again for her and the way she was pressing up against him, he knew she wanted him as bad she he wanted her. They proved their love for each other over and over again all night long.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Daryl never spent another night in the trailer he had shared with his brother. While there never had been an official moving in, he just never left except to get his clothes that now remained at Emma's. The only things he left at his old trailer were his weapons. The hunting knives, his guns and his crossbow didn't belong at in his new home, so they stayed in the closet in his old room. Other than that his life was centered solely around Emma.

They spent every free moment together. If they weren't at work, they were with each other. To Daryl's surprise business at the shop increased as word of his mechanical skills spread. The man whose Porsche he fixed came back for them to work on another car of his, he also told his friends who started to bring their cars to Mack's and just word of mouth had them both working five days a week.

Daryl was making enough money to continue to contribute to the rent to help his brother and also split costs with Emma, since he was essentially living there.

For another couple month Emma still worked at The Devil's Brew and Daryl spent those nights sitting at the bar talking to Sally. Emma was fine with him being there every time she worked. However, when his hours stayed full time at the garage, he encouraged her to quit as they didn't need the money that bad and Emma was happy to. The bar atmosphere was not for her.

Time pass end it was getting close to a year that they were together and everything was still going strong between them. Daryl had been secretly doing some extra jobs on the side to save money. He wasn't getting any younger and he wanted to ask Emma to marry him. He was saving for a ring. Something he never thought he would do, but it was already picked out and he was paying it off as much as he could. He was still a couple hundred short before he could bring it home.

One day after work, Merle approached him after he parked his pickup. "You been watching the TV at all little brother or spending all your time buried in your sweet young thang?"

Daryl took a deep breath. "Merle, I've told you for the last time not to talk about Emma that way. If you disrespect her again, you ain't never gonna see another dime of rent money from me again. Got it?"

"Didn't mean nuthin' by it, so don't get your panties all twisted. Something weird going on in Atlanta, TV is calling it a sickness, but some people are going crazy down there for no reason," Merle told Daryl.

"City people are crazy, you know that bro. You got anything else for me?" Daryl asked. He was anxious to see his Emma.

"Yeah, I need help with something. My buddy Mike, the one that moved to Memphis has a job he needs help with and he'll make it worth our while. Can I count on you?"

Daryl automatically wanted to say no as he knew Mike only meant trouble, but he hesitated. What did worth his while mean? "What's the job and how much is it worth?"

Merle smiled confident that Daryl was going to help him. "We just hafta drive a truck from Memphis to Charlotte. That's all."

"Fuck that's all. Gimme the rest."

"We just gotta do it Saturday night," Merle told him.

"Lemme get this straight. First, we need to drive five to six hours to Memphis. Then at night we drive a truck to Charlotte and we still gotta get back here. You can't tell me anything 'bout this is legal, bro. He's setting us up." Daryl knew he needed to say no right now, but for some unknown reason he didn't.

"It's an overnight job and we've done shit like this before. I'll drive the truck and you drive your pickup behind me, we need a way to get there and back." Merle had yet to tell him the part that would guarantee Daryl's help, but it was now time. "The job's worth a grand, bro. That five bills each for an overnight job. We both can use the money."

Daryl lit up a cigarette giving him a chance to think for a moment. The job was shit. He'd bet everything that if the truck got pulled over, they end up in jail with the key thrown away. His instincts told him to say no and walk away. He was about to, and then he thought about the money he would make. He would be able to pay off Emma's ring and still have a little left over.

"Fine. I'll do it, but it's the last job like this I ever do with you. Got that Merle?"

"Sure. You got that pretty little thang to take are of now, ol' Merle here is on his own."

"Fuck off," Daryl told him. They quickly hashed out when they were going to leave and Daryl headed home. He knew this was a bad idea, but he wanted to give the ring to Emma. This way it wouldn't take him another few weeks to save up what he still owed. It also hit him that it would the first time they would be separated overnight since they became a couple. Actually, he would be gone most of the weekend.

"Em, where are ya?" he called out once he got inside.

"Putting away laundry in the bedroom."

Daryl found her folding clothes in the bed. "Hey listen, I took an extra job with Merle this weekend, "he started to tell her.

"A little extra money always helps." Emma felt it was good that he spent time with his brother, even though he made her uncomfortable. Daryl and Merle had been together for a long time before she came around and sometimes she felt guilty that Daryl rarely saw him anymore.

"It does, but there's a catch. I gottta gone most of the weekend." Daryl watched Emma for her reaction. He saw her normally happy face, turn sad as his words sunk in. "I know, we'll be apart, but it's just this once. I told Merle this was the last time. Okay?"

Emma hated the thought of him being gone for the weekend, but she would never say no to him. She forced a smile back onto her face. "I think we can survive a weekend away from each other. I'll miss you, but it's okay Daryl."

"Thanks Em," he said with a sly smile. "Since we won't be together for a bit, maybe we should start making up for the time we'll be apart." Daryl took the laundry she had in her hand and tossed it back into the basket. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a deep kiss.

"I like how you think," she purred as she rubbed her hips against his. She could feel his growing erection in his pants. Clothes soon went flying and they didn't leave the bedroom at all that night. Their desire for each other never waned in the year they had been together.

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* * *

.

Daryl and Merle were approaching Memphis and Daryl had started regretting this trip ten minutes after it started. He forgot how much Merle could annoy him. Now almost six hours later, he was ready to shove him out the door.

"Bro, are there more cops out than normal?" Merle asked. Something wasn't right. He could just feel it.

"Yeah, there is. I ain't got a good feeling 'bout this." Daryl kicked himself for the hundredth time for agreeing to do this run with Merle. They finally pulled up at the address that Mike and given them. Merle made a quick call with his cell phone and the large garage door opened. They got out of Daryl's pickup and went inside. Mike was there with a box truck.

"What the fuck is going on around here?" Merle asked Mike.

"Not sure. News is covering the extra cops out, but no one is saying why. Heard people are going crazy out there though. I'd suggest heading out of the city pretty damn fast," Mike advised.

Mike gave the directions to Merle, while Daryl just stood there knowing this was completely fucked up. He should just head home, and not go all the way to North Carolina. Mike handed the keys to Merle and peaked off five one hundred dollar bills. "You get the rest when you deliver the truck."

Merle handed the money to Daryl. He knew his brother would keep it safe. He popped in to the box truck and Daryl into his ancient pickup and they headed off to North Carolina.

It was almost six hours later and the sun had started to come up when Daryl realized this was officially nothing but a huge clusterfuck. He wished his radio worked so he could hear if anything was being said about this traffic nightmare they were in. By his estimate they were only half way to Charlotte, but nothing had moved in the last hour or so. The other side of the highway was busy, but it wasn't backed up like they were.

With Merle's truck in front of him, he couldn't see much that was ahead. All of a sudden there was a commotion that he couldn't see. Horns were honking and people started yelling and screaming. Next thing he knew Merle jumped out of his truck and ran back to Daryl's pickup. His face was white as a ghost.

He jumped in the passenger seat and slammed the door. "What are you doing?" asked a confused Daryl.

"Get us the fuck outta here, bro," he replied.

"What about the truck and the delivery?"

"I just saw a guy eat a woman's face off. Fuck the truck, we're done."

Daryl sat there shocked. That could not have happened. "Were you smokin' weed, man? You gotta be seeing things."

"You hear that yelling, fuckin' crazy shit is going on and we need to get out of here now!" Merle yelled.

This was so out of character for his brother that Daryl knew something bad was going on. He was glad he was in the passing lane when a woman covered in blood and looking not all human started walking between the cars towards them. Daryl didn't hesitate. He threw the truck into drive and drove across the grassy median getting them the hell away from the carnage that was going on.

It took Daryl almost four hours to get them back home. His heart was racing the entire time. Merle told him what he had been hearing over the radio and the bloodbath he witnessed. Daryl had never seen his brother shook up before. Nothing ever phased Merle, but this sure did.

Daryl had gotten off the highway as quickly as he could once they turned around and took back roads to avoid the chance of getting stuck again in the traffic. His only thought was to get back to Emma. When he pulled into Riverside it was practically on two wheels. They had seen signs of trouble all the way back.

He slammed the truck into park and ran for her trailer….their trailer. Her car was gone. He shouted for Emma, but there was no response. "Where the fuck are you?" he yelled to an empty room. Daryl didn't know what to do. He ran to the kitchen and in earlier his haste he had missed a note on the table. Emma was always leaving him notes, so he knew it was from her. He quickly scanned it and ran for his brother.

Daryl burst into his old trailer almost got himself shot in the process. "Whoa…whoa, bro it's me!" he shouted at Merle who held a shotgun up.

"Don't go bustin' in here like that unless you want your head blown off!" Merle bellowed. He started to shove clothes in a duffel as fast as he could.

"I need your help. Emma took a last minute extra shift at the diner. You gotta come with me to find her. Then we all need to get the fuck outta here." Daryl was in a panic. He had to get Emma now and the three of them needed to find a safe place to stay until this blew over.

Merle knew that Daryl rarely asked for his help with anything and while they weren't as close as they used to be, Merle was not going to let him down. "You got it, little brother, but we're taking our gear with us. I'm not gonna be caught without a gun, if those things come at us."

Daryl quickly agreed. He felt more comfortable with a gun after hearing what Merle told him. They loaded up all of their weapons into the pickup including Daryl's crossbow. Merle tossed a duffle full of clothes in the back and they sped off looking for Emma.

Forty-five minutes later there was no sign of Emma. Her car was at the diner, but it was empty and locked. The diner was completely abandoned. Daryl drove back to the trailer park twice and around town too. He even tried the bar she used to work at and there was no sign of her. All they saw was chaos happening all over the place. Daryl drove back to Riverside and the trailers one last time. He didn't know what to do.

Daryl rested his head on the steering wheel. His heart was breaking. He could not believe this was the same town he had left yesterday. He had no words to describe what he had Merle had witnessed. He needed Emma, but she was nowhere to be found. He opened the truck door to check the trailer another time. Merle followed right behind him armed with a gun.

Nothing had changed since the last time he had checked. "Pack a bag, bro and one for Emma. We'll keep looking for her," Merle told him.

Daryl turned to look at his older brother. Merle was shocked to see tears in his eyes. Only then did he get how important Emma was to Daryl. The last time he had seen Daryl cry was when he was eight years old and had been beaten by their father. That was almost thirty years ago. "We'll find her," Merle told him with a hand on his shoulder.

A nod was all that Daryl could manage. He threw clothes into packs for him and Emma and then he left her a note on the kitchen table telling her to wait for him. By the time he was ready to leave the trailer, which was no more than twenty minutes later, the trailer park had started to become unsafe. They quickly loaded Merle's motorcycle into the bed of the truck and took off once again looking for Emma.

Daryl and Merle never returned to Riverside Trailer Park and they never ever found Emma. After another hour and several very close calls with people that didn't look human, Daryl had to admit defeat. They drove out of town without a destination in mind. Merle for once in his life, kept his mouth shut as he saw the tears streaming down Daryl's face. It had taken him all this time to realize that his baby brother had fallen in love. Merle would have given anything at that moment to help Daryl, but it was like Emma had vanished into thin air. She was nowhere to be found, she was just…gone.

* * *

 **A/N - Thank you again to everyone reading and commenting on Suddenly...GONE. What do you think so far?**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

 _ **Several years later…**_

Daryl knew he was going to die.

He had already accepted that over the last few hours. Throughout the years that he had been with Rick, there had been countless close calls and last minute saves since the apocalypse happened, but this was different and he knew it. It was also all his fucking fault. He didn't mind dying, he really didn't, but what bothered him the most was that Glenn, Michonne and Rosita were going to die too and there was absolutely no one to blame but him. When they died, it would be the same as if he had sent a bolt directly through their hearts.

He would never intentionally kill any of his friends, but it still came down to one fact…they were here because of him. To him it was the same. His fault either way.

They were all part of this unique family that they had created when they all had nothing else but each other. Whether or not one of them needed or wanted help, the others were always there to back them up. It was simply what they did. Daryl had been so determined to find Dwight, that even when they all knew it was a bad idea they still followed him. Would any of the other's ever know what happened to them? How would Maggie handle losing her husband and with a baby on the way?

Daryl knew better than to go off halfcocked trying to find Dwight after he killed Denise, but he did it anyway. Her death was his fault too and it was eating him up inside. Dwight had been aiming at him, but since his aim with Daryl's stolen crossbow sucked, he hit Denise with the bolt instead and now she was dead.

He was responsible for too many of his friends dying, so while he sat bleeding in that dark van he figured he was better off dead to save the rest of them. He would sacrifice himself for the greater good of the group.

The van they were locked in was dank and cold. His right shoulder throbbed non-stop from the bullet wound where Dwight had shot him. That was another stupid mistake he made. He was an expert tracker and hunter and that the prick was able to get a jump on him showed how off his game he really was.

Daryl tried to shift to a more comfortable position, but it only made his head spin. The bullet hadn't gone completely through his shoulder and was still lodged inside. He had lost a lot of blood, in fact his shirt was covered in it and the wound was still slowly bleeding. Michonne had dressed it the best she could and forced him to drink some water that they found in the van. He needed to replace some of the fluids he was losing, but it didn't help much. He was in a pretty bad state, but that wasn't what was going to kill him. At least not just yet.

He laid his head back against the wall of the old van and closed his eyes. How his life had changed these past few years. He had lived a miserable existence for most of his life until he met his Emma. She had completely changed him and all for the better. She had showed him what love was and he drank it up like a man dying of thirst. He had been a man who had never experienced love, not from his worthless family or ever from a woman. Emma had changed all that. She had been the light of his life.

The light was long gone. Daryl never forgave himself for not finding her the day all hell broke loose in the world. He searched all over for her with countless trips back and forth between home and the diner where she worked. He had even tried the bar that she had quit months before and anyplace he could think of, but she was nowhere to be found. Merle had to drag him away from the trailer park as the area was overrun by the dead. Her kiss good-bye the day before was all he had left of her. If he hadn't gone off to help his fuckin' brother the previous day he would have been around to make sure she was with him when they literally had to run for their lives.

He was never the same man since then. Daryl had become an angry, confrontational loner. He had mellowed a bit over the years, but he never let anyone that close again. Rick and the group were almost like family to him, but that had taken a real long time for that to happen and he still kept himself a bit apart from them. He never got involved with another woman after Emma, he never wanted to. It hurt too much losing her and he wasn't going to go through that again.

Suddenly there was the sound of many voices outside the van and Daryl and the others waited anxiously to see what was going to happen. If he had to he would sacrifice himself to save the other three, he would. Glenn had Maggie to go home to, plus they were expecting, Michonne was involved with Rick and Rosita, well she was a female. While she was a tough one, he would die before he let anything happen to her.

The door was flung open and cool night air penetrated the van. Daryl, Glenn, Michonne and Rosita were all dragged from the vehicle and to their astonishment they saw the rest of their group there too, all on their knees with hands behind their backs. Michonne and Daryl quickly shared a quick 'what the hell is going on look.'

Daryl stumbled out of the van as he could barely stand up. His head was spinning and his legs were ready to give out from under him, but he used every ounce of strength he had not to collapse on the ground. His rebellious eyes took in everything around him. They were surrounded by at least a hundred people, probably more. Rick and everyone were kneeling in front of a large man that held a baseball bat with barbed wire wrapped around it. That was certainly fucked up he thought. Daryl caught Rick's eyes and it surprised him the fear he saw in them. Rick wasn't afraid of anything. _Fuck_.

The remaining four were also told to get on their knees next to the rest of their group. Glenn looked panicked at the sight of an obviously sick Maggie kneeling next to Rick. The big guy with the bat started talking again. Apparently he was Negan, the guy they had been looking to take out. Daryl instantly knew they had underestimated him and the Saviors. Just another screw up that he was responsible for.

He was the one that had suggested to Jesus that they could take out the Saviors for the Hilltop Community so in return they would supply them with the food they needed in Alexandria. He and Rick were overconfident and that just fucked them…big time.

Daryl's eyes were hard and cold as he watched Negan as he strutted back and forth before everyone talking non-stop. He wasn't going to let this asshole or any of his people know that he was desperately afraid for everyone, except himself. He wasn't able to catch all of the words the pompous ass was saying as he struggled to stay conscious. He was trying to look stronger than he actually felt.

Daryl tried to concentrate on what Negan was saying, but it was hard. He was repeating some stupid kids rhyme and pointing the bat at each one of them. Daryl had missed what was going on. _Damn_.

Suddenly Negan stopped and slammed the bat down on Abraham...and again and again. Daryl was shocked as he looked at the bloody mess that was left of Abraham's head. It was virtually gone. His stomach rolled as he saw the gore that was left. The girls were all crying, even Michonne.

He didn't mean for Abraham to die! If he knew what was going on, he would have volunteered. He just couldn't concentrate on what Negan had been saying as he tried not to pass out. It was just another thing he failed at. He couldn't even get dying right.

.

* * *

.

A woman joined the many Saviors watching Negan show off his power to this new group of people. She had seen it countless times before and it turned her stomach every single time. Rarely did she watch the ceremony as the deaths were always too gruesome for her.

In a time where they are constantly surrounded by death, even this was too much. The living taking the life of another living being was wrong. The war should be against the dead, but she had learned to keep her opinions to herself in order to survive.

She had become part of Negan's group a while ago. She had no idea if it was months or even a year. Time meant nothing anymore. She and a few others had been absorbed into the Saviors and it was both a blessing and a curse. She hated the brutality of her existence in the time after she lost everything because the dead were no longer dead.

At least with the Saviors she no longer had to worry about being raped…again. That had happened to her before as people lost any of values or morals they once had. Negan didn't allow that and for that reason alone, being with them was a blessing.

For most of her adult life she had been an easy going, happy person. Now she simply survived. It was the best she could hope for and so far she had been able to not get involved with any of the men, even though they actively pursued her. She did her job around their encampment and tried to stay in the background as much as possible. The last thing she wanted was to draw Negan's attention to her. His harem of wives was well known and she did not want to be added to that group or she would never be able to get out.

She had been drawn to the circle feeling tonight something was different. She found herself observing this new group that Negan was dealing with. She peaked though the crowd and saw them from behind on their knees. Their posture was slumped and defeated. There looked to be about ten of them left. She could see the body of person laid out on the ground. Negan had made his bloody point already and she was grateful that she missed that.

Quietly she moved around the people watching, until she was able to see most of their faces. It was a combination of women, men and a teenage boy. There was one figure that she couldn't see. The man had a blanket over his shoulders and was partway slumped over in pain. She could see the blood that covered the front of his shirt. His longish hair obscured his face, but there was something about him that drew her to him. She felt her palms start to sweat as he shook his head to clear the hair from his defiant eyes. He was older, but she recognized him in an instant. It was Daryl.

Emma had thought he was long dead along with everyone else that she knew. She could tell than he was badly hurt and her first thought was to run to him and cradle him in her arms, but she couldn't. He was the love of her life that vanished the day she lost everything. The day chaos overflowed and took everyone and their lives with it. No one was ever the same after the dead rose up.

In the confusion of that day she could never find him. She lost her car keys so she wasn't able to drive back to the trailer to look for him. Daryl had gone off reluctantly with his brother to do something that kept them away overnight. It was the first time they had been really apart since they became a couple and she never saw him again.

Until now.

She tried not to blame him, for what she had gone through these past few years, but he had told her he would always take care of her and protect her, and he didn't. If he hadn't gone off with Merle maybe things would be different. She was different now anyway. Gone was the old Emma, this new version of Emma was less emotional, and much more cautious then she had ever been before. Emma also tried to stay clear of all men. She didn't trust them for a second, because every time she did or she let her guard down she was abused one way or another.

Even though she wasn't sure that Daryl would welcome her, she had to find a way to get to him and that was going to be hard. Negan had already made his point to the group on who was in control. She doubted there would be any more deaths that night. In fact, it was coming up on sunrise so Negan would be sending the group back to their home to do his bidding soon.

Emma took her eyes off the wounded Daryl for a moment and followed Negan as he told the group his conditions. He wanted half of everything they had - food, weapons and everything else. "You got that Rick?" Negan laughed. "Half of everything!"

Negan turned and for a moment his back was to the weaklings he had kneeling before him like subjects before their king. He smiled at everyone that stood on the outskirts of the circle watching him subdue another group to do his bidding. He loved the power he had. His eye caught something and he looked back. How had he missed her? He saw a beautiful woman watching him and her green eyes captivated him.

When Emma saw that Negan was smiling directly at her, she knew she had just made a huge mistake. The last thing she wanted to do get his attention and she just did. He winked at he and she reluctantly smiled back. She had gotten good at hiding from men and him, until now. There was no way she was ever going to let one near her again. As soon as he turned his back to her, she slipped through the crowd back to her sleeping area. There she gathered the small pack she had with minimal supplies and headed for the road that she knew Daryl's group would have to take to get out of there. She would have to get them to stop for her somehow. Her best chance was that Daryl would see her, but with as injured as he was, that may not happen.

As Emma snuck out of the camp she passed a pile of empty cardboard boxes and got an idea. She ran back to where her friend Sharon lived and rummaged through her belongings until her found what she needed. Then as quietly and unobtrusively as she could she snuck out of camp for what she hoped was the very last time.

* * *

 **A/N -** New Time, New Dimension, New World. As you can tell this takes place right at the end of Season 6. I must have written that chapter over ten times. I 100% believe that is going on in Daryl's head while they are in the van and kneeling before Negan.

I hope everyone will like where this is headed. Thank you for everyone that is reading Suddenly...GONE. I love all of the comments/reviews. Keep them coming! Thanks to imlovinfanfic, Miss October 13, WalkingAddiction, snowflake2410 and AnonymousReader42.

What did you think?

Walker Witch


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

The survivors were herded into the RV that most of them came in. Glenn and Aaron helped carry Maggie inside and Rick and Michonne tried to help Daryl. His independent streak was no match for Rick and Michonne as they each grabbed him under an arm and forced him towards the vehicle.

Maggie was lying on one of the cushioned benches and Glenn was talking to her in a soft voice. Daryl wouldn't lie down so Michonne propped pillows behind him. He was still bleeding from the bullet wound, but they didn't have any medical supplies to help. She found an old towel that she pressed against the wound. Daryl glared at her and she silently dared him to stop her.

Rick took a moment to hug his son and count that everyone was aboard. His eyes met Michonne's for a moment and the strength he saw in them helped him focus. He then sat in Abraham's seat and hesitated before he started the RV. The sound of soft crying came from the back as Sasha and Rosita both still cried for the man they lost.

With a shaky hand, Rick turned the key and the engine started. As he drove the RV out towards the road, not one of them has yet to say a single word. The traumatic experience they had all been part of was too overwhelming for them. They were all simply shattered.

The road that had been filed with Saviors was now deserted. Rick drove slowly as not to jostle the ailing Maggie and Daryl. The still needed to get to The Hilltop so Dr. Carson so he could take care of two of his closest friends.

About a mile down the road he noticed a woman walking, but he ignored her. Michonne however did not. She saw the sign the woman held up, it said,

" ** _Help. I'm Daryl Dixon's wife, Emma_**."

"Rick, slow down," she called out.

"I'm not stopping," he relied in a flat voice.

Michonne leaned over to a barely conscious Daryl. No way anyone would know Daryl's last name unless they knew him. She moved so she was now sitting in front of Daryl. "Daryl? Hey listen to me."

"What?" he growled.

"Did you ever have a wife named Emma?" she asked him.

Daryl instantly became more alert. "Emma? How do you know about Emma?"

Michonne knew it was true. "Rick, stop this damn RV right now. Daryl knows that woman."

Rick slowed the RV down until it stopped. "What are you talking about?"

Michonne had walked up to the front and squatted next to him. "I think that woman is Daryl's wife."

"What?" he exclaimed. "Daryl's not married."

"Have you ever asked him? She held up a sign that said she was Daryl Dixon's wife, Emma. How would she know his last name? And when I just asked Daryl, he reacted to her name. Look at him, Rick?" They both turned to see their friend struggling to stand and walk. Aaron and Rosita grabbed him so he wouldn't fall. He was too unsteady on his feet.

"Michonne, how do you know about Emma?" he shouted weakly.

"I'm going to go talk to her," Michonne told him.

Rick got up from his seat. "I'm coming too."

Emma's heart sank as the RV drove past her. She started to walk faster to keep up with the oversized camper. There was no way she was going to lose Daryl, not again. Suddenly she noticed the brake lights come on the RV slowed to a stop. " _God, this was really happening_ ," she thought. " _Daryl. I'm going to see Daryl._ "

She walked alongside the vehicle and watched the door opened. A woman first exited, followed by a man. Before she could speak the woman did.

"How do you know Daryl?" the beautiful black woman asked her.

"I…I knew him before all this happened. We lived together, next to his brother and…we were going to get married," Emma told them. "Can I see him?"

"Hold on," the man said. 'You held a sign that said you were married to Daryl and now you're not? No, Michonne she's not getting in the RV. She's lying to us. It's just another trick."

Emma started to panic. "No, I'm not trying to trick you. Yes, I technically lied, I'm not his wife, but would you have stopped it if said girlfriend? He was the love of my life and he was planning on asking me to marry him. I found the receipt for the ring in his pants pocket when I was doing laundry. He went on an overnight job with his brother Merle, the creep, and the last I saw of him was that old two tone pickup of his driving away. I never saw him again in the chaos of this damn world. You all know that went from nothing to out of control instantly. I thought he was …dead all these years. Please…I need to see him." Emma knew she was rambling, but she tried to plead her case the best she could. These people could either let her go to Daryl or leave her stranded on the roadside. Her heart beat wildly in her chest.

Rick didn't say anything for a moment. Emma didn't realize it, but she had told Rick things that not many people knew, especially about the pickup. Not even Michonne knew that when he met Daryl he was driving the '73 Ford pickup that was two-tone. Plus she knew his brother. Rick looked up to the windows of the RV and wished Daryl was able to help him out here. He didn't want to believe her, but he did. He ran his fingers through his curly hair before turning back to Emma, "I'm going to let you come with us, but if Daryl gives me any hint that he doesn't know you or he doesn't want you there, you are gone. Got it?"

"Yes," Emma replied. "But it won't be a problem, he loves me."

Rick stood back and let her enter the RV. Michonne put a hand on his shoulder. "What changed your mind?" she asked.

"She knew his truck. Only Glenn, Carol, myself and Carl knew Daryl early on when he his old pickup. No one else would know that." Rick pulled Michonne into his arms and held her for a minute. "Are you okay?"

"Are any of us okay?" she sighed. They kissed before following Emma inside.

Emma watched as multiple sets of eyes zeroed in on her. She searched for Daryl amongst the people crowded into the camper. He was all she cared about. She easily found his crumpled form sitting on the bench seat, one of the women was helping to support him. Emma was instantly jealous.

She knelt down in front of him and gently pushed his hair out of his eyes. This was her Daryl. The rough and tumble man that stole her heart years ago and she never let go. "Daryl?" she said softly.

He slowly opened his eyes and raised his head. Was she real or was she a ghost? He had thought her dead all these years. He sluggishly lifted his hand to cup her face, "Emma, you're alive?"

Everyone in the RV quietly watched the touching reunion. "I've missed you so much, Daryl," Emma told him with tears streaming down her face. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held him for the first time in almost three years. Emma released him and sat next to him on the bench. He smiled at her, before passing out. The woman who was on his other side caught him. Together and with Aaron's help they laid him down on the bench.

"Rick, get us out of here and to Hilltop," Michonne called out. "Daryl's passed out and Maggie doesn't look any better."

"You got it," Rick answered quickly and got the RV started down the road.

"What happened to him?" asked Emma.

"Dwight shot him," the Hispanic beauty that was on Daryl's other side told her. "I'm Rosita."

"Fucking weasel," Emma said under her breath. "Sorry, I'm Emma. What is Hilltop? Is that where y'all are from?"

"No," answered Michonne. She didn't want to say where they were from until she knew Rick was okay with it. "Hilltop has a doctor there and that's where we were taking Maggie. Let me introduce you to everyone." Michonne told Emma everyone's names, plus introduced herself. "Tell me more about you."

Emma knew this wasn't just a curiosity question, so she told them everything about her. First, she explained again about her and Daryl. Then she told them about how she ended up as a Savior. "Even if you guys hadn't stopped I would have kept on going. I couldn't stay there any longer."

"Why not?" Rosita asked her.

"Negan. I've been trying to stay hidden from him since I got there. He's notorious with the women, in fact he has 'wives' multiple wives and I wanted no part of that. But tonight I made a mistake. When I realized that was Daryl I had to get closer to see him better and Negan saw me. With the look he gave me I knew he would come searching to for me, so I had to go. Hopefully, when he doesn't find me, he'll forget all about me." Emma hesitated for a moment and then turned to Michonne. "I don't know anything about Daryl's life these past few years, can you tell me anything? What's he like now? Is there…anyone in his life?"

Michonne didn't want to compromise her friendship with Daryl, but what Emma wanted to know wasn't really private. "He's a great guy, but very much a loner. Rick and Glenn have been with him pretty much from the start. I gather he was a bit angry back then with kind of a big chip on his shoulder, but he's different now. He's very much a part of all of us as anyone is, and he'd put his life on the line at any time, which is how he got shot, but he's always been kind of sad. At least that's how I see him."

Emma was very surprised. That wasn't the Daryl that she knew. Sure he was shy in the beginning when she first met him, but he never had a chip on his shoulder and sad? Her Daryl sad? That wasn't the man she had fallen in love with. "Wow, doesn't sound like the Daryl I knew. I mean we're all different now, how can we not be, but that wasn't how he was before. Where's his brother, Merle?"

"Dead," Michonne told her. Even though Merle redeemed himself at the end, Michonne never liked the man.

"Poor Daryl," Emma sighed as she looked at his unconscious form. "He drove us both crazy, but Merle was all the family Daryl had left. Okay, this is my last question." Emma said softly. "Is Daryl involved with anyone now?"

Michonne smiled at her. "No. I've never seen him even show any interest in a woman."

Emma's heart sang. If he had moved on from her, it would be difficult if there was another woman involved, but there wasn't. She turned and saw that Rosita was still holding the towel to Daryl's wound. They had him lying on his side so they could access it on his back. "I can hold that for a while if you want?" she offered to Rosita.

Rosita didn't want to give up helping Daryl. It gave her something to do so she didn't think about Abraham. She had loved the big obnoxious guy even after he dumped her for Sasha. Helping Daryl helped her forget the sight of what was left of Abraham after Negan killed him. It was absolutely awful. However, Rosita wasn't a selfish person and apparently Emma and Daryl had been separated for a longtime, so she wasn't going to keep them apart. "Sure. Come over there and we can switch places. Just hold this tight against him."

Even just touching him this way was wonderful for Emma. As she held the bloody towel to his wound she tried to look him over the best she could. She never forgot the man he was and she took in the changes. He did look older, he was in his early forties now. His hair was definitely much longer and shaggier, he always wore it quite short before. She brushed it out of his face and even though it was dirty and covered in blood, Emma leaned over and kissed his cheek. She still loved him. He just had to survive until they got him to the doctor, she couldn't bear to lose him twice.

* * *

 **A/N - I love how everyone is trying to figure out where this is going. We're back into the apocalypse, but this is a Daryl story, remember that. What if the loner, chip on his shoulder, never getting involved with anyone guy...was that way because he had lost the love of his life when this all started? Could be why he was angry at the world and why he never got involved with a female like the rest of them did. Right? Maybe?**

 **Thanks for everyone that's reading and commenting! I try and respond when I can. If you post as a guest, I can't answer you - like WallkingAddiction just want to say thanks for the thinking I'm good enough to write for TWD. I'm not, but i appreciate the love.**

 **Happy reading!**

 **Walker Witch**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

The ride to The Hilltop was quiet. Daryl never regained consciousness and while Maggie lightly moaned as she held onto Glenn's hand the whole way. Jesus met them at the gate as he had been alerted by the guards on duty that they were approaching. Rick explained that they needed Doc Carson's help badly. With the help of several of the people from Hilltop, they were able to get both Maggie and Daryl inside the walls and to the doctor.

Harlan Carson met them at the door to his small clinic. He directed them to put Maggie on one bed and Daryl on the other. "What happened?" he asked quickly.

"Maggie has severe abdominal pain, so we're worried about the baby and Daryl was shot 2 days ago in the shoulder and is still losing blood," Michonne told him.

"Maggie, when did the pain start?" the doctor asked.

"Late yesterday morning," she groaned.

"Why did you wait so long to get to me? And he was shot two days ago?" Doctor Carson quickly took the vitals of both patients, finding neither was doing well.

"We tried to get Maggie here yesterday, but the Saviors had other ideas. We only got away from them a few hours ago. We found Daryl at their camp. They didn't do anything help him," Rick growled.

"Okay, you're here now. I need everyone to give me room to work, so please wait outside. Rick, I need to talk to you for a second first." The rest of the group left except for Glenn who refused to leave Maggie's side. "All I got is two hands and there are two very sick patients. Who do you want me to work on first? They both need me."

Doc Carson has just asked Rick an impossible question. Should he have him try to save Maggie and her baby or the man that was like a brother to him? Fuck, what should he do? "Doc…"

"Maggie, try to save her first," came a voice from behind him. Rick turned to see Emma with tears in her eyes. "Daryl would want that."

Rick knew she was right. "Maggie," was all he said before walking out.

"Doctor would it be alright if I stayed and cleaned up his wound to get it ready for you?" Emma offered. She didn't want to leave him especially now.

The doctor quickly showed her where everything was that she would need and turned his attention to Maggie. Emma tore off what remained of his shirt and a small smile came to her lips. Daryl still preferred his shirts with the sleeves torn off as he did back when they lived together. " _Some things never change_."

His skin looked so pale to her as she worked to clean the dirt and dried blood off his body. The wound was only oozing at this point, but it looked nasty. Emma used wet gauze to clean around the wound and Daryl groaned when she touched it. He was lying on his stomach, so Emma caressed his face trying to get him conscious again. "Daryl…baby, It's Emma. Open those blue eyes for me… c'mon I know you can do it. Look at me Daryl."

Daryl heard a voice talking to him in the distance. It sounded like Emma, but she was dead. Maybe he was dead now too? He struggled to hear it again, but his head was so fuzzy. He wanted to hear Emma again, " _Talk to me_ ," his brain screamed. " _Where are you Emma_?"

Daryl's eyelids started to flutter and Emma kept talking to him and touching his hair. "That's it Daryl, come on back to me. I love you, baby and I need you to wake up."

He slowly regained consciousness and it was a struggle not to fall back into the peacefulness of oblivion. He was trying to follow Emma's voice. Where was she? His eyes sluggishly opened and he tried to focus on the person that was looking at him. He felt their hand on his head, stroking his hair. Then he heard her voice again.

"Daryl? Look at me. It's Emma."

His eyes opened and Emma was smiling at him. Yeah, he was definitely dead, but if that meant he'd be with Emma again he was okay with that. He could feel her hands on him and he wondered how being dead worked. Could he touch her too? Daryl tried to move his hands to reach out but they felt heavy and leaden.

Emma could see that he was struggling to wake up, so she kept talking to him. Finally his eyes opened and she could see him trying to focus on her. Tears started streaming down her face as they looked at each other for the first time in almost three years. "Hey," she said softly to him. "Welcome back."

"We're not dead?" he whispered coarsely. His voice was not up to normal speaking.

"No, we're not dead," she told him.

"How are you alive? I… couldn't find you, Em. I searched and searched…until we couldn't do it anymore. Where did you come from?" His hand shook when he reached up and touched her tear streaked face. "God, it's you, it's really you. Where are we?"

"Some place called Hilltop. Oh Daryl, it's a miracle I found you again. Now we just have to get you better. The doctor is working on Maggie, he should be here soon." Never in her wildest dreams could Emma have thought that after all this time she would find him and here he was. The man that she loved more than life itself was back. Now they just had to get him to survive the gun shot.

"Maggie, what happened to Maggie? Is the baby okay?" he asked suddenly no longer concerned for himself.

"I don't know. All I was told was that she was sick and they were trying to bring her here, when they got taken by the Saviors."

Daryl struggled to turn on his side so he could see her better. He bit back several curses. "How did you end up with us? I don't remember much about last night accept Negan."

Just as Emma was trying to figure out how to answer Daryl, Dr. Carson showed up. "How's Maggie?" she asked him instead of answering Daryl.

"I'll let Glenn tell you all. So Daryl let's see what you have going on here, it's good that you regained consciousness." He made Daryl lie back on his stomach so he could see the wound better, but all Daryl wanted to do was look at Emma. "Nice job cleaning it up…"

"Thanks. I'm Emma."

"Let's see where the bullet is since there's no exit wound."

Dr. Carson poked and prodded the jagged hole in Daryl's right shoulder and checked the range of motion he had. It was painful for Daryl, but his range was not restricted. Emma noticed Daryl had closed his eyes and his face was tense with pain.

"Well Doc?" he asked through gritted teeth. _Fuck that had hurt_.

"Daryl, you know I'm not a surgeon, so I would only go in after the bullet if I had to, but I don't think I need to. It doesn't look like it hit any bone and it's not restricting the joint. Sure it hurts like hell, but as long as we stop the infection you have going on and the swelling from the injury goes down, you should be okay. I think we should play use a wait and see approach. Is that okay with you?"

"Fuck, yeah if you ain't gotta go digging in for the bullet I'm all for that," Daryl agreed.

"Alright, then I'm going to debride the wound and pack it with some sterile gauze. I'll get some antibiotics for you and something for the pain. We need to keep you hydrated as that will help you replenish the blood you lost," the doctor told Daryl and headed toward his supply room. He came back with a couple of pills and a canteen of water. "Take these and I'll get started on your shoulder. I won't lie to you, it's gonna hurt."

"That's okay Doc. Can't hurt more than when I hadda pull an arrow outta my side," he told them.

"Daryl!" Emma exclaimed. "Who shot you?"

"Keep him talking while I work on him, Emma. It will help distract him," Dr. Carson said as he probed the wound with his fingers. Daryl tensed as pain shot through him.

"Well?" she encouraged him.

"You could say it was my fault. I was looking…for a lost little girl and fell into a ravine. Don't ask …how. Fuck." Daryl had to hesitate for a second. "I hadda arrow cocked in my crossbow and it released as I fell. Damn Doc, you sure you ain't trying to dig it out with your fingers?" Daryl closed his eyes to the pain. He was determined not to look weak in front of Emma.

"Oh my God. That awful, Daryl. Why did you have to pull it out? Couldn't you wait for someone to help you?" Emma could picture him doing this. He was always so strong and capable.

Daryl took a deep breath and kept talking through the painful procedure. "I had two walkers comin' at me and needed the arrow to take at least one of them out. It was that or die and I sure as hell wasn't ready to die yet. That's this scar here." Daryl pointed to the puckered circular scar on the left side of his abdomen.

"Well you are about to add another one to your impressive collection." Harlan had learned not to ask questions that was none of his business. Why Daryl's back was covered in what had to be whipping scars was none of his business, but he was curious. "Emma, let me show you how to dress the wound so you can do it for him when you go back to Alexandria."

Emma simply smiled at the doctor. What was Alexandria she wondered? Was that where they lived? Would she be allowed to go?

"What about Maggie?" Daryl asked after the dressing was applied.

"I need to keep an eye on her, so she's staying here for a while. Do you need supplies or does Alexandria have them?" the doctor asked.

"We got 'em," Daryl replied.

"Thank you Doctor," Emma told him with a smile.

"It's Harlan, Emma. No need to be formal these days." He touched Emma's shoulder before heading back to check on Maggie.

"Where's Rick?" Daryl asked.

"Outside with everyone else waiting. Maybe I should tell them how you're doing?" Emma said looking at Daryl.

"Yeah, but first come here next to me." Daryl was lying on his back now. His pain was down to a strong, but dull throb.

Emma squeezed next to him on the narrow bed. "What?"

Daryl reached up slowly with his left hand and pulled her towards him. He didn't stop until her lips met his and they kissed. Their first kiss in years. It was a soft, gentle kiss that was full of love. Any question that Emma may have about Daryl and his feelings for her was instantly answered with that kiss. He still loved her. She had no doubt about that.

"Looks like someone's feeling better," a deep voice said from behind Emma.

They broke the kiss and Emma turned around with a smile. Rick was standing there grinning. "What the doc say?"

"Guess I'm gonna live," Daryl said cracking a small smile.

It had been a very long time since Rick had seen Daryl with anything close to a smile on his face. Emma was having a good effect on him and Rick was ready to find out more about her. "Emma, can you give the rest of the group an update on a Daryl while I talk to him a second?"

"Sure," she told him. Daryl grabbed her hand before she left and gave it a squeeze. Then Emma headed outside to give them time alone. She knew exactly what Rick was doing and she had nothing to hide.

"I need to make sure that you are good with Emma being with us, cause if you're not we can leave her here," Rick told Daryl. "You never mentioned her ever, so it's whatever you want."

Daryl knew that Rick had no idea what Emma meant to him. There was no way he could, since Daryl never said her name again after that horrible day when he lost her in the chaos. "No, I want her with us…with me. I know I've never said shit about her before, but I couldn't . I just couldn't when I thought she was dead. Nothing made sense after that."

Rick got what he was trying to say. This was one of the reasons why Daryl was the way he was. Michonne had picked up on it, but Rick never gave it any consideration. She always thought Daryl looked sad and she was right. His tendency to be off by himself increased as time went by, instead of getting better. He had suffered a great loss or so he thought. The smile Rick had seen told him that they were all going to see a different Daryl now that he had Emma back. At least something right had come out of the mess Rick had started with the Saviors. Everything else had been an absolute disaster.

"Good to hear. She seems like she'll fit in especially if she puts up with your cranky ass," Rick laughed.

"You know it!" Daryl said cringing a bit as he laughed. The damn pain was still getting to him. "When are we getting outta here?"

"If you are ready to travel, we can load up. Maggie and Glenn are staying here for a while."

Daryl kicked himself for forgetting about Maggie. "How is she?"

Rick looked down at the floor before meeting Daryl's eyes. "She lost the baby."

"Fuck," was all that Daryl could say.

"Yeah, exactly. Harlan's gotta do a procedure on her and then she wants to rest here for a while. Let me check with him that he doesn't need you for anything else." Rick turned to find the doctor, but looked back at Daryl for first. "We gotta figure a way out of this, bro. Negan can't win."

"We will. When we get back we can all meet up and talk it out. Now go find the Doc."

Rick walked out of the room looking for Dr. Carson. He wondered how much Emma had told Daryl about her involvement with the Saviors. Somehow Rick didn't think Daryl was aware of that yet and he wondered how that would affect their relationship. The Saviors were ultimately responsible for both Abraham's death and that of Maggie's baby. Would Daryl and the other's blame Emma? As Rick went to find the doctor is was something that continued to bother him.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

The ride back to Alexandria was brutally quiet and thankfully uneventful. Daryl wanted to walk on his own to the RV, but when he stood up the room spun and the strength he counted on having in his legs just wasn't there. Rick and Aaron had to help him get settled in the RV much to his dismay. Daryl never wanted to appear weak in front of anyone, even though he had a perfectly good reason.

Emma sat next to him during the trip and held onto his hand the entire time. She made sure that Daryl drank plenty of water during the drive. She finally had to stop asking him, when he told her if she didn't stop, he was going to piss all over her. His blunt words didn't bother her that was just her Daryl. They were the only two during the journey back that had small smiles on their faces.

Rick finally pulled the RV up to the front gate and flashed the lights. The big heavy gate opened for them and he slowly drove inside. Father Gabriel met them shortly after with Judith. Rick grabbed his young daughter from the man's arms and hung onto her tightly. He had come so close to losing everything and everyone that he needed to hold onto his young daughter. He could not let that happen again.

Everyone slowly departed the RV and went their separate ways. Aaron and Emma both helped Daryl out of the vehicle and Aaron headed them towards a house. Emma looked around in wonder. This wasn't a camp or any make shift living quarters, this was a complete housing development behind walls.

"Wow! I never knew living like this was possible now," she exclaimed.

"We even have electricity and running water," Aaron told her. Daryl was too busy trying to deal with the dizziness and pain to listen to their conversation. All he wanted was his bed, but he wasn't going to admit that to anyone.

"I haven't had a shower in months, no make that years! I just can't believe this." Living here was like the apocalypse never happened.

"Baby, you okay?" Emma asked Daryl. She could hear his heavy breathing that got worse with every step.

They had reached the front steps that led up to the house. "Let's rest a minute before heading inside," he said as he tried to catch his breath. The Doc had told him he was anemic because of the blood loss and until that corrected itself, he would be tired and short of breath all the time. Daryl didn't want to believe that, but his body was telling him otherwise.

It was a beautiful day and Emma could hear children playing and people laughing, but it wasn't real. How could this be? Life beyond the walls was the new reality, wasn't it? This felt so normal and abnormal at the same time.

Daryl finally agreed to start moving into the house and it took about them ten minutes to get him up to his room. He collapsed on the edge of the bed exhausted. "Thanks," he mumbled to Aaron.

"No problem, Daryl. Do you guys need anything else?" he asked.

"I think we're good, Aaron. Thank you so much for helping us." Emma gave him a kiss on the cheek and Aaron waved goodbye and left. Emma closed the door and they were finally alone.

"Well this house is certainly a big step up from the trailers we lived in," Emma said looking around the room. It was very nicely furnished, but there was no sign of Daryl in it, just his clothes.

"Yeah, but it never felt right to me," he sighed.

"Why not?" Emma sat down on the bed next to him. She was curious to know why he felt that way.

"Too fancy, feels like a damn hotel. Too many people. And…" he started to say.

"And what?"

"And… you weren't here," he admitted. God how he had missed her.

"Oh. That's the sweetest thing you ever said to me. I missed you so much too." Emma wrapped him in her arms and gently held onto him. She had grieved for him for such a long time and now that was all over. They could start again...a second chance for them both. "Why don't you rest for a while and take a nap?" she suggested.

"A nap? What am I a fuckin' kid?" Daryl retorted. He was tired and he hated feeling that way. "Sorry."

"You think I haven't seen you cranky before? Let's get you undressed so you can relax." Emma bent down to help him take his boots off.

"Now you're talking!" he said with a sly smile.

"No! "she replied a little too quickly. "I mean, you were unconscious just this morning after being shot. You're weak and exhausted. Recover your strength first and we can take it slow, okay?" Emma had yet to tell him of the abuse she had gone through. She loved him deeply, but she wasn't ready to let him touch her that way yet. Somehow she had to find a way to tell him. With his injury she could at least stall him for a little while and maybe by then sex would not make her freak out.

"Fine, but I'm sure I'll be recovered real quick," he told her. He couldn't wait to get his hands on her again. She always turned him on more than anyone he had ever known.

Emma rolled her eyes at him and proceeded to undo his boots and the ties he had around the bottom of his pants. She asked him why he did that and Daryl explained it was a trick he learned years ago for hunting. Tying the pants legs stopped ticks, chiggers and other assorted bugs from crawling up his legs when they were in the woods.

Daryl slipped off his leather vest and handed it to Emma. "I can't believe you still have this old thing," she said laying it on a chair.

"I've lost my bike and my fuckin' crossbow, twice in fact, but I'll be damned if anyone takes my vest away. They won't live to get it." Somehow Emma knew that Daryl meant that. He had lost a lot, but she figured that his favorite vest with the wings was one of the last pieces of his old life he had left.

His shirt was such a mess, that Emma knew it wasn't salvageable. She tossed that towards the door so she could get rid of it. Emma helped him lie down on the bed. It felt wonderful to Daryl. He was absolutely exhausted. "Thanks, Em," he smiled at her before closing his eyes. His life had changed incredibly in the last twenty-four hours. One minute he was ready to sacrifice himself for his friends as he felt he had nothing left to live for and now Emma was back and he was on top of the world. He dozed off with a smile on his lips.

"He is so handsome," Emma thought as she watched Daryl fall instantly asleep. Even older and in really bad need of a haircut, he still could make her heart race. Now she just needed to convince herself that his touch was okay, that he wasn't like any of the animals that had raped her. She had to remember how he made her feel safe and cherished, and he would touch her out of love instead of violence. It would be hard, but she would find a way. She had to.

While he slept she explored their room. There was a small sitting area in addition to the bed and they had their own bathroom. Emma had a semi-clean set of clothes with her and the thought of a hot shower was too much to resist. She went into the bathroom and closed the door. She went to lock it and then told herself no. She couldn't do that to Daryl, she wouldn't lock him out.

Soon she was standing under the hot spray just relishing how it felt on her skin. She washed herself multiple times and her hair twice, this was a luxury that she wanted to enjoy to the fullest. Once she got out of the shower, Emma wrapped herself in a towel. She noticed the toothbrush Daryl had on the sink and only hesitated a second before she used it to brush her teeth. They had shared more intimate moments than a toothbrush, so she counted on him not minding. After towel drying herself and her hair, Emma dressed in her only other set of clothes and left the bathroom. Daryl was still sleeping on the bed. She walked over to him and brushed his hair aside. It was strange seeing him with hair this long.

Emma's curiosity was too much to resist so she slipped from the room and headed downstairs. She wanted to explore the rest of the house and she had a ton of questions for someone… anyone she could find.

A leisurely walk down the stairs brought Emma into a hallway that led to the kitchen and living room. Michonne was the playing with a toddler. "Who is this beautiful little girl?" Emma asked crouching down next to them.

"This is Judith, Rick's daughter. We're spending some girl time together aren't we, sweetheart?" Michonne said to the giggling child. "Is Daryl resting?"

"Yeah, he's sound asleep." Emma sat down on the sofa and laid her head back on the cushion. "This is all so surreal, Michonne. I never thought I'd see him again and when I saw him last night with the rest of you, I almost screamed and ran to him. I was so happy to see him." Suddenly Emma realized she had a big smile in her face. While she had found Daryl, all of the others had lost a close friend through a brutal death and also Maggie's baby. "Oh Michonne, I'm so sorry. Here I go spouting off like an idiot when you all lost so much. That is so insensitive of me. Please forgive me."

If Michonne hadn't already like Emma, she would now. Emma had been with them less than twenty-four hours, but she was already one of them. Rick had told Michonne that when Harlan asked Rick who he should treat first as they were both in equal need, that Emma spoke up and said Maggie. She was right, that's what Daryl would have wanted. She became one of them at that moment. Now she was apologizing because she was happy that she found Daryl again. Daryl? Michonne never would have thought that his tendency to be loner and the few times he smiled it never really reached his eyes was because of a woman. Then again it made perfect sense.

At some point or another they all hooked up with someone, but never Daryl. Or Eugene, but he was a different story. Daryl befriended women, like Carol and Beth, even herself, but it never moved beyond friendship. He was simply mourning the loss of Emma. Michonne was happy that her friend had found joy during this dark time for them all.

"No need to apologize, Emma. I understand and I'm happy for you both. We all are. You're one of us now," Michonne told her with a smile. She then turned to Judith and blew raspberries on her pudgy belly. They all laughed together.

"Can I ask you a few questions?" Emma said.

"Sure. Fire away."

"Who lives in this house?"

"Rick and I have a room, Carl and Judith, Daryl, Sasha and then Carol. The others live in the house next door except Aaron. He lives down the street with Eric. We share the duties around here and we each have some sort of responsibility in the community. I'm sure Rick will eventually talk to you about that. For now just get settled in and help Daryl get stronger." Michonne was looking forward to see what changes would occur in Daryl. She had already seen him with a real smile which was the first for him. It finally came from his heart.

"You don't by chance have extra clothes for people around here do you? I only have what I had on yesterday and these and both set of clothes needs to be washed," Emma asked.

"I should have thought of that, I'm sorry." Michonne stood up and picked up Judith. "C'mon sweetie we are taking Emma clothes shopping."

On the way to the supply pantry Emma asked Michonne a few more questions about life in Alexandria and how they came to be there. While juggling Judith in her arms Michonne gave Emma a brief rundown on their lives before they came to this walled community. That ultimately they had Aaron to thank for finding them and inviting them to come see Deanna who was the leader when they arrived. Rick was in charge now that Deanna had died.

Walking back to the house Emma felt like her life was finally changing in a way she never thought possible. She had decent clean clothes in arms for the first time in ages and had even picked up a couple of shirts for Daryl. She had noticed his closet was pretty bare. And she felt she had started a new friendship with Michonne. People you could trust were rare these days and Emma had just stumbled into a whole group if them. The icing on her day was being back with Daryl.

"Thanks for the shopping trip," Emma called out to Michonne as they each went their separate ways in the house.

Emma quietly entered the bedroom where Daryl slept. His eyes were still closed and the steady rise and fall of his chest, confirmed that he was still sleeping. She quickly changed into some of the new clothing she had gotten and hung up the rest along with the shirts she had picked up for Daryl in the closet. Then she curled up in a comfortable looking loveseat in the corner of the room and took a nap herself.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

"Hey Em?" Daryl called out. "Emma?"

"Hmmm, yeah," she mumbled half asleep. Emma opened her eye as saw that she was in strange room and jumped to her feet her eyes wide open with fear.

"Whoa, Em. It's just me…it's me Daryl. Take it easy," he said softly from the bed trying not to scare her. Daryl could tell that she woke up confused. Hell, he was confused. Why was she sleeping on the sofa and not next to him?

It only took Emma a second to realize where she was and who was calling her. Daryl did not miss the fact that her hand went automatically to the knife at her waist. "Oh sorry. I was confused for a minute were I was." Emma noticed Daryl was sitting on the edge of the bed. "Do you need something?" she asked him getting up and walking over to him.

"I need to take a piss, but I think I need help getting there. I tried to get up and hadda sit back down again."

"Of course," she told him. "Lean on me and we'll get you there." Daryl stood up steadier than he was before, but not enough to walk alone. Emma could see the improvement already.

Daryl slowly made his way to the bathroom cursing under his breath the entire time. He was as weak as a baby and it pissed him off. Emma helped support him on his weaker right side and rolled her eyes at his whining.

"Babe, earlier you needed two people to get you on and off the RV, now it's just me, don't you see the improvement already? You just need a little patience Daryl…for God's sake you were shot."

"Whatever," he said through gritted teeth. "It still sucks."

"It does, but it won't last for long." Emma steered him into their bathroom. He was slightly swaying on his feet and trying to undo his pants. "Oh no you don't. You're going sitting down. I'm not holding you up while you pee."

Daryl looked at her with angry eyes. "You want me to take a piss sitting down? Like a girl?"

"I sure as hell do," she retorted. "You're too weak to stand and I'm not holding you up, so just sit the fuck down and pee!" Emma forgot how stubborn he could be at times.

Daryl raised an eyebrow at her, before turning around. He dropped his pants and sat down on the toilet with her help. He had never known Emma to curse. Sure every other word out of his mouth was one, but not Emma. She never did, until now. "Happy?"

"Very! Now I'll leave you alone, just call me when you need to get up." Emma turned to leave, but Daryl called her back.

"Wait, why are you leaving? You've watched me take a piss hundreds of times, why not now?" Daryl was a bit worried. She wasn't telling him something. First, it was a comment about taking it slow, then she fell asleep on the sofa rather than next to him and now she was uncomfortable while he peed in front of her? What the hell was going on? Sure they had been apart for a longtime, but that was all changed now. She still loved him and wanted to be with him, right?

Emma knew there was no reason for her to leave, except it didn't feel quite right to stay. It had been almost three years that they had been apart, jumping back in where they left off felt weird. Then again maybe she was making more out of this than she needed to, but either way she and Daryl still needed to talk. "Fine, I'll stay." She leaned up against the sink and crossed her arms.

Daryl stared at her the entire time with a sly smirk on his face. By the time he was done, Emma was smiling too. He could always win her over. She helped him out of the bathroom and onto the loveseat that made up the small sitting area. Emma sat down next to him. Neither said anything for several minutes.

"We need to talk," Emma said finally breaking the silence.

"Yep."

"Did you come back?" she asked tentatively. Emma was desperately praying that he was going to say yes. She needed to know that he came back to find her.

"Fuck, yeah of course I did. We both did. Merle and me abandoned the delivery truck in the middle of the fuckin' highway once we knew what was going on and I raced the pickup back to the trailer, but you weren't there." Daryl talked for a long time telling Emma everything he and Merle did trying to find her. "Em, I didn't want to go, but we didn't have a choice. The area was being overrun. Merle and me had never seen anything like it. Where were you?"

Daryl had wondered for years what had happened to her. It weighed heavy on his heart all this time that he had let her down. It had changed him. He never should have gone off with Merle that weekend, but the money was too tempting so he could pay off the ring he wanted to give her.

"That day was a disaster. First, I was missing you terribly, so when Joe called to see if I could cover to for a girl that hadn't shown up I thought it was a way to make extra money and it would keep me busy. Well I hadn't done laundry yet, so I had to wear a slightly dirty uniform. Driving in I noticed lots of police, and fire trucks around and everything felt off. Something was wrong but I didn't know what. The diner was almost empty so I had no idea why Joe called me in. Sunday breakfast should be busy especially after church, but it wasn't. Now I'm wasting my time there, because there is no lunch crowd what so ever and I go to ask Joe if I can go and it was like a switch had turned. Everything downtown went crazy." Emma paused to take a breath. She hated thinking about this day, but she had to clear the air between them.

"We could see what was happening in the streets and the people being attacked. It was horrible, Daryl. I had never seen anything like that before. We locked the door, but these things were banging on it. Joe told us to get out of here and leave. Everyone grabbed their shit and left, but I couldn't find my purse. It had my car keys in it. I had no way to leave and I didn't know what to do. Joe said he'd take me home with him and we'd figure it out. We ran out the back door and Joe got attacked at the car. Oh god, Daryl it was horrible. Joe was screaming and these people were eating him. All I could do was run."

Emma was crying and Daryl pulled her into his strong arms. Even now seeing a live person attacked was horrific. It never got easier. Finally Emma was able to continue and told him how people had taken her in their house to help her and the next day they all escaped in a van. It was one day after another of traveling, hiding and going from one group of people to another.

"That's how I ended up with the Saviors. My small group was attacked so I was the only one left. Then I was... umm saved by Sharon, Steve and Billy shortly after. We were together for just a few weeks when we had a run in with a small herd and the Saviors guys helped us out. They then took us in and…"

"Wait. Wait!" Daryl exclaimed. "You were with the Saviors? With Negan?"

Emma looked at Daryl in surprise. She thought he knew. "That's how I saw you Daryl. I went to the 'ceremony' as Negan likes to call them, but I usually never did. It's way too brutal for me, but I was drawn to it for some reason. When I saw you there, I knew why. I almost ran to you to protect you, but that would have been your certain death. I had been thinking about leaving them, but I had no place else to go. I know they were ruthless and cruel to others, but I had food and protection that I hadn't had in a very long time." Emma paused for a second to take a breath. "I knew Negan was going to let the rest of you go, so I had to find a way to get to you. I left to get my pack and I started to walk the road, hoping the RV would come by and you would see me. Even if you drove right by, I had to leave. I couldn't stay any longer." Emma shuddered to think of what her life would be like as one of Negan's many wives. If he wanted her, there was no way around it. No one said no to Negan and she had no desire to get involved with anyone.

'I can't believe you were a Savior, Em. How could you stay with them?" Daryl was shocked. He hated this group even worse than the Governor and Emma was one of them.

"Daryl what choice did I have? They took me in when I had nothing left, but the clothes on my back and the knife on my belt. I had no idea what they were like, until weeks after I was there. I couldn't survive on my own, but I didn't support what they did. I hated it, but what did you want me to do?" Emma pleaded. How could he not understand that? She wasn't like him, proficient with weapons and surviving. It surprised her that she had lasted this long as it was.

Daryl looked into Emma's eyes and knew he had no right to question how she managed to survive all this time. He hated to admit it, but he owed those fuckers a thanks for helping her, otherwise he may not have her now.

"You're right. We've all had to do shit to survive that we wouldna've done before. Hell, I never considered killing a man and now I can't remember how many it's been, all to keep me and the group alive. I'm sorry," Daryl leaned over and kissed her. He still loved the feel of her lips on his. The kiss started slow, but he pushed it further opening his lips so he could make his tongue dance with hers. Emma responded as she always did. God, he would never ever get enough of her.

Emma leaned into the kiss, so her hands were on Daryl's hard chest. Kissing was good, she could kiss him and that was wonderful. She felt heart started to race, but she was able to control the panic that was just under the surface. This was her Daryl and everything would be okay she tried to convince herself. Except, when she sensed that he was going to take it further, she broke the kiss, she just couldn't do anything more even with him.

"I need us to go slow, Daryl. I'm sorry," she said not meeting his eyes.

Daryl asked her the question that had been weighting on him, "Do you still love me?"

"Yes, of course I do…but…it's been a long time and I think we need to get to know each other again. A lot has happened to each of us in the past few years, so just go slow for me okay?" Emma was praying he would understand and give her the time she needed. She was hoping to be able to get over this fear without having to tell him. She didn't want him to look at her differently, because she was raped.

Daryl was relieved that she still loved him. He had been so worried with her slightly odd behavior that she didn't. If she just wanted to go slow, then he would go slow even if it meant taking a lot of cold showers. "Okay," he said with a smile. "I can do that." He kissed her nose and leaned back onto the sofa cushions, his shoulder was starting to really ache. "Do we have any pain pills?"

"Yes" Emma said jumping up. "Michonne helped me get them when we went shopping."

"Shoppin'?"

"Well technically not shopping, but we went to the supply pantry and I got some clothes. I even picked up two shirts for you. Then we stopped by the infirmary and she got me the pain pills and antibiotics that Dr. Carson wanted you to take." Emma filled a glass with water from the bathroom sink and handed Daryl both a pain pill and an antibiotic. She sat next to him again.

Daryl swallowed the pills and closed his eyes for a brief second. Then he remembered something that Emma had said. He turned to her, "Why did you say that you had to leave the Saviors even if you never met up with us?"

"Because I didn't want to become another one of Negan's wives," she told him.

"What?" he growled. "Did that prick touch you?"

"No he didn't touch me, but he noticed me. That night you were all there, I moved to the edge of the circle of people watching to get a better view of you and his back was to us as he was spouting off his crazy rhetoric to you all so I thought I was safe. All the women knew he had a wandering eye and no one ever said no to him. We were all afraid. He has taken like a dozen or so women as his wives and I always stayed away from him. But that night he turned and saw me. He smiled and winked and I knew he would send someone for me, so I smiled back like I was interested and then slipped out when he wasn't looking. I got my pack and left. I'm just glad that Michonne convinced Rick to stop the RV and here I am." Emma laid her head on his shoulder. No one would ever take his place in her heart. It was nothing short of a miracle that they had found each other again.

"I'm not sure I could bear the thought of him or anyone touching you Em. I'd have to kill anyone that hurt you. I'll never let that happen again, I swear." Daryl had let her down once, and he was bound and determined not to let that happen again.

Emma looked up at him and kissed him gently. His stomach rumbled and Emma realized he probably hadn't eaten recently, maybe not days even. No wonder he was weak. "You must be starving. Negan typically doesn't feed his prisoners. How did I not think about this before? I'll go get you something to eat."

"Yeah, I could definitely eat. Help me back to the bed first, Em?" he asked.

Once she had Daryl settled back on the bed, she stared to leave, but the called her back. "If you see Carol, can you ask her to come up?"

Emma cocked an eyebrow at him. "Carol? I haven't met her yet. Who's Carol?" she demanded. She be damned if she sent another woman to see him if they had something going on. What if Michonne was wrong?

Daryl burst out laughing. "You are so hot when you're jealous. Carol is simply a friend, actually she's more like a sister than anything else. I need to talk to her and I want her to meet you, okay?"

"If I see anything other than sisterly shit going on, you'll pay for that mister," she told him trying to come off angry but failing.

"Your language sucks," he called out laughing at her.

"I learned from the best, so shut the fuck up and rest. I'll be back in a little bit." Emma heard him laughing at her as she made her way down the hall to the stairs. It was a wonderful sound to everyone.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Emma was looking through the cabinets and refrigerator for food options for her and Daryl. It still surprised her to have cold food and hot water and even lights. Sasha walked in the front door and Emma caught her eye. "Can ask you a question, please?"

"I need to feed Daryl, what's the food situation in the house? Do you all have you own stash or is it communal or what?" Emma asked her.

"It's for everyone. Typically Carol cooks, but with her gone I'm not sure what we're doing. So whatever you find… is fine I guess." Sasha knew she couldn't blame Emma for Abraham's death, but there was still some resentment there.

Emma sensed the tone of Sasha's voice right away and she didn't blame her. "Thanks Sasha. Before you go, can I say something?" Sasha turned back to her with big sad eyes. "I don't know the dynamics of this group yet, but I hope to soon. I sense that the friend you lost may have been more than a friend to you, and I am so sorry for what Negan did. I don't blame you for blaming me as I was part of that group, but I want you to know I did not support anything they did. Being with them was a way for me to survive, nothing more. "

Emma put her hand on Sasha's arm in comfort and Sasha looked up from the floor at her. Tears were streaming down her face. Emma did the only thing that she could think of and that was to draw Sasha into a hug. The two women bonded in a moment of sadness and forgiveness. "I'm so sorry," Emma whispered.

"Thank you," Sasha replied as the broke the hug. "Abraham and I had recently gotten together, but we've been friends for a long time." She wiped the tears way with her hands and tried to smile. "So you and Daryl, huh?"

"Yeah, we were together for about a year before the world went crazy. He was off with his brother when it happened and we never found each other again. I can't believe all this time later we finally did. I sure do love that man," Emma told her.

"If I think about it, it kind of makes sense for him," Sasha said.

"How do you mean?"

"We've all been together a long time, some longer than others and Daryl is one of the original members of the group. He's always been one that wanted to do things in his own, never said much, but always had our back. We've all gotten involved with someone as some point or another, except him. Daryl never showed any interest in anyone. Even on the way back here, I saw him smile at you. It was a real true smile, something I had never seen from him before." Sasha hated that her heart was breaking and Emma's wasn't, but she knew it was completely unfair of her to feel that way. It took everything in her to say, "I'm happy for you both."

Sasha headed to her room and curled up on the bed. The tears flowed freely down her cheeks and as sad as she was, she realized that she was happy for Daryl. Some good had to come out of this disastrous experience and Daryl deserved it.

Emma fixed something for her and Daryl to eat from what she could find in the kitchen. Her heart went out to Sasha and her loss. It was horrible that Negan made his point to newcomers by brutally killing one of them. Sasha was devastated by her loss, while Emma was thrilled to be back with Daryl. It just didn't feel right to be so happy, when the rest had lost so much…this Abraham and Maggie's baby.

Just as Emma was about to head back upstairs to Daryl, Rick and his son walked in. Emma remembered that Daryl wanted to see a Carol, but come to think about it didn't Sasha say that she wasn't there?

"How goes the ornery patient?" Rick asked her.

"He's impatient, but I even see improvement since he's had time to rest. Now it's time to feed him," Emma said showing the plates of food in her hands. "I hope it's okay that I helped myself, Sasha said it was."

"Sure," Rick told her. "The food belongs to everyone."

"Rick, Daryl said that he wanted to talk to Carol, but I don't know her. Is she around?" Emma asked.

Rick looked at Carl and didn't say anything for a moment. "She isn't here, she left."

"Any idea when she's coming back, so I can tell him?"

"I better talk to him myself. Carol took off on her own and said she wasn't coming back. Daryl's not going to take that well." Rick had been dreading telling him. He knew his friend would want to take off looking for her, but Morgan already was. Daryl was also in no shape to go anywhere now or in the near future.

"Oh…okay. I'll wait down here then." Emma watched Rick leave and Carl stayed with her in the kitchen. "You want me to make you something to eat?" she asked him.

"Would ya? With Carol gone no one else knows really how to cook," Carl told her.

Emma already had extra food that she had put away in the fridge so all she had to do was reheat if for Carl. She had a plate in the microwave for him and she still couldn't believe that this was possible in this world. Electricity was such a luxury now. As she pulled the plate out, she heard loud voices coming from upstairs. Emma looked at Carl as she put the plate in front of him.

"I guess Daryl's not taking it well," Carl said picking up a fork to eat. In between mouthfuls of food, Carl volunteered what had happened with Carol.

The both turned towards the hall that had the staircase when they heard Rick yell, "Daryl, no you can't go. Emma!"

"Oh no," she said making a run for their room. She took the stairs two at a time and was slightly out of breath when she made it to the doorway. "What's going on?"

"He can barely walk and he wants to go find Carol. He'd being unreasonable," Rick told her.

"Okay, before we do anything rash," Emma said staring down Daryl who was struggling to get out of bed. "Tell me the whole story. What is going on?" Emma was going to buy as much time as she could so they could reason with him.

Rick repeated for Emma what he had just told Daryl. Carol had left on her own accord because she felt if she stayed she would need to kill in order to help keep everyone safe and she just couldn't do it anymore. He told her how both he and Morgan went off to find her. They found her trail and the dead bodies she left in its wake, but they hadn't found her yet. Morgan convinced Rick to head back and he would continue to look for her.

"What does Morgan know about tracking?" Daryl argued. "Nuthin'! That's why I can find her and bring her back." Daryl stood up, but he was very unsteady on his feet. He sat back down using every curse word he knew.

Emma walked over to him and crossed her arms against her chest. "Are you done?"

"I'm going after her."

"No you are not. First, you can't even walk on your own, so how do you expect to go after her? If a walker comes after you, what are you going to do? You can't fight it off, so you might as well just offer them your arm up for dinner or would you prefer your handsome face? You're in no condition to go anywhere. So don't even think of it." Emma was not going to let him go anywhere.

Daryl gave her a look that typically would have anyone else cringing, but not Emma. "Oh please, you know that look never worked on me. You don't scare me Daryl Dixon."

Rick snickered in the background and Daryl tossed him a dirty look.

"And secondly," she continued, "I know I don't know this Carol, but if she felt she had a good enough reason that she needed to leave, be it the right one or not, it was hers to make. Someone is looking for her and you'll have to put your faith in them that they will find her. When they do she may come back or she may not, but it's her choice. Not yours, Daryl." Emma sat next to him on the bed and took his hand in hers.

"I just got you back, so there's no way in hell I am letting you out of my sight. You need to recover from being shot! You weren't scratched, Daryl you were shot at fairly close range, so you just need to accept that I'm not letting you go. Plus we have three years of catching up to do, so you are not going anywhere." She felt his fingers tighten on hers.

"I think I'm going to leave you two. Emma, you have him well under control." Rick left the room laughing and Daryl yelled after him calling him a 'mother fuckin' pussy bastard.' Rick just kept on laughing.

Emma shook her head, "Time hasn't improved your language at all I see."

"He left me at the mercy of a female I can't resist, when he knows I should be looking for Carol. He plays dirty." Daryl was begrudging realizing that they were right. He knew he wanted to go find Carol, but he wasn't up to it. Not for a while yet and Emma was right. They needed to spend time together to get to know each other again. He would have to count on Morgan to find her.

"You win," he told Emma. "I'm not going anywhere, except I'm starving to death. Weren't you bringing me food?"

"I was, until Rick shouted for me. I thought you two were gonna kill each other, so I ran up here without it. I'll go reheat the plates for us." Emma stood up to head back to the kitchen. "Thank you," she said to him before leaving and pressed a kiss on his forehead.

Daryl grabbed her by the back of her neck and pulled her down to him. This kiss was a full on toe-tingling-I-want-you-naked type of kiss. It left Emma breathless. This time her heart was racing for a good reason and not in panic. Even in her haze she noticed the progress.

They broke the kiss before it went too far. Emma rested he forehead against his as they both struggled to control their breathing.

"We always did have great chemistry," he said.

"You can say that again," Emma laughed. "Let me go get that food, before you completely distract me."

Daryl reclined on the bed, with his left hand behind his head. "Feed me woman. Your man's hungry," he commanded with a sexy half smile. Emma left the room shaking her head. She had a feeling that this slightly older new version of Daryl was going to prove to be very interesting.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

It was after dinner and Emma was cleaning up in the kitchen that she thought about how much her life had changed so quickly. She went from not having anything at all and being alone, even with the Saviors she still felt alone, to finding the man she never thought she would ever see again and living in conditions she never thought possible. She was beyond happy.

As she put away the last plate, Michonne popped into the kitchen. "Do you think Daryl's up for a visit?" she asked?

"Definitely. He's getting stronger all the time. I suspect tomorrow morning his shoulder will still hurt, but he'll be up and around on his own," Emma told her.

"Good. I'll get Rick and we'll come by the room, okay?"

"Yeah. I'll go make sure he's decent. He could use another distraction besides me," Emma said. "See ya in a bit." Emma went upstairs and was surprised to find Daryl sitting on the sofa dressed in pants and an open shirt. She had left him relaxing on the bed in his boxers.

"You made it on your own! How unsteady were you?" she asked sitting next to him. The last thing she needed was him to fall.

Daryl hated to be treated like a baby, and that's exactly what she was doing. "Em, I'm not a fuckin' kid…you need to stop babying me so much."

Emma realized that was exactly what she was doing, but she just wanted him safe. "You are right. I'm sorry, but I can't help worrying. Daryl, you were unconscious for a longtime this morning, so I'm a little overprotective. Forgive me?" she asked him with a pretty little pout.

"Course," he told her dropping a light lingering kiss on her lips.

"Sorry to interrupt, but Emma said we could drop by," came a voice from the doorway. Rick and Michonne stood there grinning at them.

"Rick turned to Michonne, "I'd say he's definitely feeling better."

"A lot better," she laughed.

They made themselves comfortable on the floor and the conversation flowed easily between the three old friends. Emma just sat back and listened. Daryl hadn't any friends back when they were together. He had always told her that Merle's behavior would eventually drive them away and since he was new to the area when he moved in, he hadn't had any time to make friends, except with her. Once they became a couple, he didn't need anyone else. This was interesting for Emma to see Daryl interact with Rick and Michonne. She could tell that they friendship was strong.

Rick caught Daryl up on what was going on in Alexandria. He also brought up what they needed to do before the Saviors arrived. "Tomorrow we need to strategize," Rick said. "Negan going to arrive at the gate soon and we're not giving him half of our stuff. We just need to for them to believe that it's half."

"We need to hide guns and ammo for sure," suggested Daryl. "And not where they are going to find it. Put them some place they would never think to look. Maybe in walls or under floorboards or some shit like that."

"Good idea. I'll ask Abe…" Rick caught himself. It was automatic to think of Abraham for this. He was good with construction and in fact led the crews that did that type of work around the community. However, he was dead now. "Tobin, I'll ask Tobin what he thinks."

The air hung heavy with the loss of their friend. Abraham would be missed in so many ways. Michonne was the first to speak, breaking the silence. She turned to Emma who had been quiet during their exchange. "So Emma, how did you meet Daryl?"

Emma flashed a smile at Daryl. "We were neighbors at the trailer park where we lived. He and Merle moved in right next door to me and a couple weeks later he was hanging his clothes in my closet. I never did get him to leave after that night he followed me home after work," she teased.

"She got that all wrong. She pulled the helpless female routine with a flat tire on me and I was stuck with her after that." Daryl leaned back on the sofa and crossed his arms over his chest. It was easy to see he was teasing Emma right back.

"Oh no mister, it was at least a couple days later that you showed up at the diner you knew I worked at looking to sit in my section. And don't forget you also showed up at the Devil's Brew too." Emma turned to Rick and Michonne, "That was a bar I worked in the evenings. He was following me."

Daryl laughed. "I give you the diner, but the bar was completely accidental. You know I didn't know you worked there. But she is right, after that night in the bar I never left. Just couldn't." Daryl affectionately squeezed Emma's hand.

Rick glanced over at Michonne with raised eyebrows. This was not the always-serious-never-smiling Daryl that they knew. He was teasing Emma and was happy and relaxed. Daryl relaxed? Rick had never seen that before. He was pleased for his friend.

Carl poked his head into the room with Judith in his arms letting his dad know he was putting her to sleep for the night. "Oh can I see her?" Emma asked.

"Bring Lil Ass Kicker over here, Carl," Daryl called out.

"Lil Ass Kicker?" Emma said raising an eye brow.

"Yeah that's Daryl calls her," Michonne laughed.

"Oh lord," Emma said as she took the toddler from her older brother. She played with Judith for a few minutes before handing her back to Carl. Rick and Michonne followed shortly after and Daryl and Emma were left alone again.

They sat together on the sofa, with their fingers intertwined together and Emma's head on his good shoulder. "So were you really going to ask me to marry you?" she asked out of the blue.

"What?" Daryl said surprised. How did she know? He hadn't told a soul. "Umm…well yeah I was. How did you know?" Was she psychic or just fishing to see if it had been on his mind? There's no way that she could have known.

"Well…while you were gone with Merle I did the laundry and found a receipt in your pants for a payment on a ring at Emerald Jewelers."

Daryl closed his eyes and hung his head. "I'm such a dumbass."

Emma smiled at him, "Hey," she said softly causing Daryl to turn his head to look into her sparkling green eyes. "Maybe, but knowing that you wanted to marry me helped me get through all these years without you."

He hated that fucking ring. He blamed it for the reason he wasn't home with Emma when the world went crazy. "But that fuckin' ring cost us being together through all of this shit. The only reason I took that job with Merle was that it was good for five hundred dollars and I could pay off the ring, plus have a little left over for us. If I have stayed home, I could have gotten you at the diner when everything went bad." He still felt guilty for leaving her even after all these years.

"We can't play 'the what if' game, Daryl. It is what it is. We both survived these crazy years only to find each other again. Call it fate, but we're back together and that's all that counts." Emma covered a yawn with her hand. It had been a roller coaster night and day for her with really no sleep. Daryl had slept already as he needed it to heal and get his energy back, but since Emma hadn't any it just caught up with her. "Let's go to bed."

"Hot damn, now yer talkin'" he said with a sexy smile.

"Sleep Daryl, I need sleep and so do you…and you agreed to go slow for me. Please?"

"Yeah, I know, but it ain't gotta mean I like it." Daryl stood up slowly. He was tired, but he wouldn't admit it to her. He carefully made his way over to bed. He was definitely stronger than this morning, hell Judith was stronger than he had been, but rest and food certainly helped. Just having Emma back was the best medicine he could ask for.

He sat down on the bed and took the hem of his shirt in his left hand and managed to get it over his head and off. "I should change your bandage now," Emma suggested.

"It can wait till mornin'. C'mon I want to go to bed with you." Daryl saw the look that Emma flashed him. "Em, I just want to sleep with you in my arms again. That's it." As much as Daryl wanted to make love to her again, he really wasn't up to that yet. Soon, but not yet.

Emma walked over towards the bed. "I know I shouldn't be nervous, but I am. Isn't that stupid?" she admitted looking at the floor. This was her Daryl. The man she loved more than anything and the man she had missed terribly all these years. He knew her and her body better than she did, so there was absolutely no reason to be nervous especially when all they were going to do was sleep, but she was. Her heart was pounding in her chest.

"I am too Em, but we'll get through this," he told her with one of his sexy half smiles that lifted just the corner of his mouth.

Emma returned the smile, with a shy one of her own and then walked over the dresser. She pulled out a t-shirt she had gotten to sleep in out of one of the drawer and quickly told him she'd be right back as she closed the bathroom door behind her. She just couldn't change in front of him yet. This was all new, yet at the same time it wasn't. Emma quickly changed into the t-shirt and nothing else except her panties. She grabbed her clothes and took a look in the mirror behind the door before walking out. She wished the shirt was longer as it barely covered her butt.

This was so stupid she berated herself. Daryl had seen, touched and loved every inch of her for a longtime, so this was actually tame. They had slept together naked many a night, so there was no need to worry.

Emma took a deep breath and opened the door. Her bundle of clothes was clutched tightly against her ample breasts. It was the wrong time to remember what Daryl's mouth used to do to them. He could practically make her come when his mouth devoured them. That thought sent a shiver of excitement and fear through her at the same time.

She could feel her face flush at the memory as she walked back into the room. What she wanted and what she could handle was two very different things at this time. Trying to get her mind off remembering the wild sensations that Daryl's mouth could bring her, Emma looked for a place to put her dirty clothes. The room didn't have a laundry basket of any sort, so she simply dropped them on top of Daryl's clothes that were in front of the closet. A problem she would deal with tomorrow.

Daryl was already in bed and very confused. Why had she gone into the bathroom to change? He had seen her naked hundreds of times, what was different about now? How could she not be comfortable with him? " _Fuck_ ," he thought. " _There's going slow and there's going backwards_." He wished he knew what was going on with her.

When Emma turned towards the bed, Daryl had the covers pulled up to his waist showing his lean hard chest. He had certainly filled out since they were apart. "You're on my side of the bed," She teased him trying to ease her nerves.

"I know, but I can't lie in my right side and I want to hold you tonight, so we're switching up, you got a problem with that?" he smirked.

"Well in that case, I suppose this will have to work" Emma laughed. She lifted up the covers and slipped into bed with Daryl for the first time in almost three years. She cuddled up next to him and it felt so right, so normal to be doing this. Emma smiled up at him, but it was soon lost to a big yawn. She was exhausted.

Daryl kissed her forehead. "Roll over so I can spoon you from behind." Emma followed request and soon felt herself encased in his strong muscular arms.

Daryl wanted to pull her tighter to him, but he was lying on his stronger side and his right arm wasn't up to the challenge…yet. His shoulder was already aching like a bitch as it was. He wished he had taken something for pain before they went to bed, he didn't want to disturb them, so he figured he'd just wait till morning.

"Em move back against me," he told her. When she did, his hard frame molded to her soft curves. Emma giggled nervously as she felt his hard erection against the crease of her backside. "You will always do that to me," he whispered in her ear.

Emma felt her pulse start to race and her hands became clammy. A couple deep breaths and a constant reminding herself that this was Daryl, not the monsters that hurt her she was able to stop the impending panic attack. "I love you Daryl," she finally said in a soft voice.

"I love you too, Em."

Emma closed her eyes and instantly fell into an exhausted sleep. Her face had a small smile on it. He was back. They were back. Miracles do occasionally happen.

.

* * *

 **A/N- Bonus Chapter Day!**

I hope everyone is enjoying Suddenly...GONE. The pace of the story has slowed down just a little bit as Daryl and Emma get to know each other again. I've picked up a lot of new followers and thank you for that! It surprises me on how worldwide TWD fandom is. I have readers from the usual places like the US, Canada and Europe, but countries like Russia, Malaysia, Argentina and Iceland i didn't expect. Thank you everyone!

For the new followers you will find that i post Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursday. My stories are finished when i start to post them, so you don't have to wait for me to get inspired or make time to write. It's done. Nothing worse than waiting three weeks to get the next chapter of a favorite story.

Love to hear what everyone thinks of Suddenly...GONE. Thank you all you TWD and Daryl Dixon fans!

Walker Witch


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

It took hours for Daryl to be able to fall asleep. The steady throb from the bullet wound matched the beating of his heart. He knew he should have taken a pain pill before going to bed, but in his haste he had forgotten until it was too late. There were also the antibiotics that Doc Carson had wanted him to take that he need too, but he didn't know where Emma had put them.

Daryl looked over at her and could see that she was still sleeping deeply as she had been completely exhausted. There was no way in hell he was going to wake her up, so instead he continued lay there in pain pressed up against Emma. He didn't know which was worse the throbbing pain in his shoulder or the never-ending hard on he had from his dick pressing up against her.

As Daryl laid there unable to sleep, his mind was busy processing everything he had gone through. It had been a crazy few days and that he wasn't dead was a sheer miracle. The only good thing to have come out of the horrible experience with Negan was finding Emma. The hardest was losing Abraham, especially in such a brutal unnecessary way. He and Rick and grossly underestimated the Saviors and Abraham had paid the price. It was unfair and wrong, so wrong. It had been his idea to start with, so therefore the majority of the blame fell on him. He would have to find a way to avenge Abraham, he had no choice. It was a code he lived by. He also had to take care of Dwight. He had fucked with him not once, but twice including being the asshole that shot him. At some point Dwight would die, Daryl knew there wasn't any other solution. Dwight killed Denise and tried to kill him twice, there was no question whatsoever that Dwight needed to die.

He looked down at the sleeping beauty beside him. She still pretty much looked the same from when first met her. Emma was definitely thinner that she had been and she had never been overweight at all, simply curvy in all the right places. Now she was definitely skinner, but for most them food was a luxury and something they couldn't take for granted anymore. Being hungry was an everyday thing. However, there was something going on with her that he simply couldn't figure out. He had no idea why she wanted to go slow with him. She seemed genuinely happy to be back with him and she had just told him that she loved him, but why wouldn't she let them have sex? What was this going slow shit? He didn't understand it at all, but he would never force himself on her. As much as it would kill him not to touch her and even if it meant dozens of cold showers or taking care of it himself…he would do it. He just wished he understood why.

Sex had never been a problem for them, in fact it was something they had been completely at ease about. Once they got over those first-time-learning-about-each-other nerves, their sex life was incredible. Daryl had never experienced anything like it or her. No one had ever made him feel the way that she did and Emma was the only woman he had ever wanted to make sure she was taken care of. He never cared about that with any of the other women he had been with as most were just convenient lays. That he got off was all cared about, until Emma.

It wasn't just him instigating the sex back then either, Emma was a hot little sex kitten herself. Daryl smiled to himself as he remember the countless times he had been watching TV and she was off doing something else, and then without a word she would drop in front of him, undo his pants and take his dick in her mouth. Within seconds she's have him rock hard and would proceed to give him a mind blowing blow job. Then she would just go back to whatever she had been doing without saying a word.

He'd be left sitting on the sofa the TV still on, his limp dick hanging out and wonder how he got so lucky. This was of course the wrong time to be thinking about this. Emma's curvy backside was still pressed up against his hard shaft with only the thin fabric of his boxers and her panties separating them. He would give anything to simply spread her legs apart and thrust into her right then, but that was off the table…at least for now.

Daryl knew he should have fallen asleep hours ago, he was tired and his body did need to heal, but between the throbbing in his shoulder and thinking about sex, his mind just would not shut off. For a guy that hadn't gotten laid in years and with the woman that made him hotter than hell in his arms it made it very hard for him to think about anything else. His shoulder finally started to settle down and so did he. Minutes went by slowly and he let his mind finally relax. Then before he knew it he was drifting off to sleep.

* * *

It was just after sunrise when Daryl woke up. His shoulder was no longer throbbing instead it hurt like hell. He knew he was going to have to finally do something about it, but first he had to extricate himself from Emma. Normally, it wouldn't be a hard thing to do if he could use his right arm, but he couldn't. It took a lot of gritting his teeth and cursing under his breath before he was sitting on the edge of the bed. He stayed there for a while, his eyes closed and hands clenched as he dealt with the pain. Once it calmed down a little bit, he opened his eyes to search the room for the pills. "Where the hell did she put them?" he thought.

His sharp eyes found the bottles on top of the dresser, Daryl stood up slowly making sure he wasn't light headed. A wave of dizziness flowed through him, but it quickly went away. He waited until he was sure he was steady on his feet. Then he walked over to the dresser feeling a lot older than his forty-one years. Hell, he felt more like eighty-one, but that would never get admitted to anyone, especially Emma.

Daryl opened the bottles and shook out two pain pills and then two antibiotics in his hand. He swallowed them all without water. He made sure he took the pain bill bottle with him back to bed and put it on the night stand for easy access. He wasn't going through this bullshit again.

He then sat back down on the bed and considered his options. As much as he wanted to feel Emma against him again, he just couldn't lie that way again, at least not right now. Instead he chose to lay down on his back so his injured shoulder was supported by the mattress. That made an instant difference. The wound was still throbbing, but it was no longer the sharp pain he had before.

Daryl glanced over at Emma and noticed she still hadn't moved a muscle was sleeping soundly. He closed his eyes waiting for the pills to kick in to hopefully get rid of the pain for the first time all night. He had no idea what they were, as the bottle wasn't labeled, but it didn't take long for them to start to work. The strong throb changed to a dull ache that finally lessened to almost nothing. Only then was he able to fall back asleep.

A couple hours later, his deep sound sleep was unexpectedly interrupted by a sharp stabbing pain that started at his shoulder and literally flowed through out his whole body. He tried to sit up, but couldn't. Emma's head was lying on his injured shoulder and the pressure of it was killing him. How had she done that? When he went to sleep after taking the pills, she was on the other side of the bed. Suddenly she shifted in her sleep and the pain became unbearable.

"Em…Emma...god girl get off my shoulder!" he groaned trying to push her off him.

"What?" she asked sleepily.

"Off. My. Shoulder," he begged his teeth clenched together.

"Oh God! I'm sorry," she told him quickly raising her head off. "Are you okay?" Emma sat up next to him not sure what to do.

"In a minute." Daryl lay with his eyes tightly shut as the sharp pain slowly started to lessen. "Can you get me a pain pill or ten?" he asked. "They are on the nightstand next to the bed. He didn't dare move.

Emma gently crawled out the bottom of the bed and even though Daryl was in severe pain he still enjoyed seeing her panty clad butt sliding off the bed. Hell, he was a horny guy after all.

Soon she was handing him a pill with a glass of water and Daryl downed it instantly. He laid his head back down on the pillow and waited. Emma stayed sitting on the edge of the bed watching him. After a few minutes, Daryl inched his way over so Emma could slide back into bed on his good side.

"Come here," he said waving her over to him with his fingers.

Emma was hesitant. "I don't want to hurt you again."

"This side is okay," Daryl told her.

Emma paused in her uncertainty. She didn't want to cause him anymore pain. She felt horrible for doing that to him.

"Em, it's okay. This side is fine."

She gently scooted over to him lying next to him on his left side. "Closer," he whispered.

Emma cuddled up next to him with her head lying gently on his good shoulder. This time it brought him pleasure instead of pain.

"I'm sorry Daryl. I didn't mean to lie on your arm that way. I guess I did it in my sleep. Our old sleeping habit just kicked in."

"Was just an accident Em, but how did you end up on that side of the bed? When I went to sleep around dawn, you were where you are now."

Emma explained that she had woken up around seven and needed the bathroom, so she got out of bed, but when she got back, Daryl had shifted over and the only place for her was on his bad side. "I'm sorry," she told him again with tears in her eyes.

"Stop. It was an accident," he told her again. Daryl wrapped his good arm around her and they lay awake for a while until he started to feel the pill kick in. He kissed her hair and silently thanked god for sending her to him again. He was so lucky, but that made him feel guilty. He hated that Abraham was dead, but he also realized that if he had volunteered, he never would have this time with Emma again.

It was like she knew he was thinking about her, because Emma removed her head from his shoulder and looked at him with those incredible green eyes of hers. He lifted his head to bring his lips to hers. He could only that for a brief kiss, before he had to drop his head back onto the pillow. It just pulled on his shoulder too much.

Emma shifted so she could look at him better and closer. Her need to taste him grew stronger and stronger until she positioned herself so she could easily lower her lips to his. Kissing she could do. Kissing her Daryl was safe and familiar and hot.

He had told her of his limited sexual experiences one night early on in their relationship as they lay intertwined together after a bout of heart stopping sex. He was embarrassed by it, but Emma had a hard time believing him. Everything he did from kissing her lips to kissing her much, much lower was like he was made for her. He apologized for being clumsy, when he was anything but.

Over the year they had been together, they learned each other's bodies and what they liked. They experimented with positions that left them both wanting to do it again or laughing because it just didn't work.

Emma opened her lips to Daryl and he immediately responded by pushing his tongue into her mouth to taste her better. Their mouths were frantic for each other in seconds. Being apart all these years did nothing to diminish their desire for each other. Emma broke the kiss on his lips first, but continued to rain sensual kisses all over his face, neck and shoulders.

Daryl felt a trail of electricity follow Emma's lips all as they traveled all over him. God, how he had missed this… and her. He didn't dare move, so he left himself at her mercy and he was loving every single second of it. His shoulder wasn't the only thing that was aching now.

The t-shirt she wore had ridden up to her waist so Daryl slid his left hand up under it and touched the warm soft skin on her back. He thought he felt her tense for a second, but since she didn't stop kissing him, he quickly dismissed it. His rough hands traveled leisurely up her bare back trying to touch as much of her as possible. Slowly he moved his hand so he was caressing her hip, then her side deliberately moving up towards her breast.

Cautiously he let his fingers brush across the rounded curve of her luscious breast. Daryl felt his desire for her flow from his fingers down into his semi-hard dick, which quickly turned as stiff as a rod, but unfortunately so did Emma. She stopped kissing him and didn't move a muscle.

Emma knew that she needed to tell Daryl what had happened to her, but she was so afraid to. She was damaged goods and she didn't think she could bear him pushing her away because of it. How could he want her again after what those men did to her? For several days she was nothing but a source of sexual entertainment for four disgusting men. She couldn't count the amount of times they violated her. It had felt endless.

The memory flash of that horrid time made Daryl's hand on her breast feel all wrong and all she wanted to do was run. Even though his hands on her body had brought her countless hours of pleasure in the past, she just couldn't do it now.

It took every ounce of all of the willpower she had to stay next to him. Emma moved her arm so it blocked his access to her breast. Daryl felt the immediate change in her and splayed his hand across her back instead. Why didn't she want him to touch her?

Emma forced a smile on her face and prayed he didn't feel the fear that flowed through her entire body. Her heart felt like it was going to pop out of her chest as it was beating so fast. She needed to stop what she started before a panic attack set in. This was all her fault.

"Good morning," she said to Daryl dropping a hesitant kiss on his lips. Kissing she could easily handle, it was anything else that through her into a panic.

Daryl wasn't fooled for one second. "Mornin'" he replied his face stone cold serious. "What was that?"

"What was what?" she asked knowing full well what he was talking about. She should have known better than to try to get anything by him.

"You shut me down."

Shit, she had really hoped he hadn't noticed, but knew that was about impossible. He knew her too well. "You said that you would go slow." Emma got up from the bed trying not to show how nervous she was. That was a losing cause.

Daryl watched her pace the room. There was going slow and there was going backwards, this was clearly going so far back he could barely remember. He felt like he was in high school trying to get to second base with a girl. He couldn't even touch her tits? What the fuck was up? This was not the Emma he knew. Yeah sure it had been a few years, but what had changed?

"Em, there's slow and there's nuthin'. I won't push you, but what the hell is going on?" he begged her to tell him.

Emma wanted to confess what had happened to her. She tried to find the right words, but they wouldn't form in her head. How did she tell him that she had been literally fucked over and over again for days by filthy repulsive men? She was positive he would turn away from her in disgust. That was something she just couldn't handle right now.

"Nothing is wrong. I just need a little time to adjust to this life again with you. Please just a little patient with me," she asked him. She prayed he would buy her weak explanation.

Daryl looked at her until she met his intense gaze. "You sure that's all it is, that you want time to adjust or is it me? Do you not want me to touch you anymore? I sure as fuck don't understand what's going on. We were always perfect together." He reached out and grabbed her hand. "Em, I'm still me…older, shaggier and uglier, but I'm still me."

Emma could tell that she was hurting him and that was the last thing she wanted to do. "I know Daryl and you are the only guy I will ever love, I really do, but just give me a little bit of time. That's all, please?" She moved next to the bed and leaned down with a kiss.

The smile she had flashed him, did not quite reach her eyes he noticed. Emma joined him sitting on the bed. "Yeah, you're older and definitely a lot more shaggier," she told him as she ran her fingers through his long hair. He had always kept his hair quite short back when they were living together. "But uglier, no way. You're still the same hot guy that moved in next to me. Hell, I was so afraid yesterday that I would find out that you were already involved with someone. I never understood why the women were never lined up at your door."

Daryl blushed at her words about him. He never grasped why she was ever with him. Emma was drop dead gorgeous with a body that wouldn't quit and why she wanted to be with him, he had no idea. He never considered himself good looking at all, not in the least. He just always felt extremely lucky that she could love a guy like him.

Daryl knew he was going to give into her request to keep going slow, he would do anything for her. "I don't understand, I really don't, but you know that I'll do anything that you need and if that means starting over real slow, then that's what we'll do. It'll mean taking a lot of cold showers until you're ready, but that's what I'll do. Em, you know that you're the hottest woman I have ever seen and I get hard just lookin' at ya, so don't blame me for wanting to get my hands on you again. Just can't help it."

Emma shied away from his smile. She had basically said the same thing to him, but his words both touched her and embarrassed her. Sure she always had guys trying to hit on her, but she figured it was because she was cursed with large breasts. Daryl had always treated her like a person, not a walking advertisement for a breast reduction. He made her feel special and she always appreciated that. She still wanted to be with him and have him touch her like he used to, she just had to convince her head that it was okay. This was such a huge conflict for her as her body still easily responded to him, but then the memories would kick in and she couldn't move past them.

She was happy that she had no problem kissing him, that was easy for her to do and it was safe. It was just when it went to the next level that she couldn't handle it yet. Emma knew that she just had to keep reminding herself that this was Daryl, the man that loved her and who never ever hurt her no matter what. He was nothing like the monsters that violated her so brutally.

"I promise it won't be long," she told him with more conviction than she felt. "How about getting something to eat?" she suggested changing the subject. "Do you feel up to going downstairs?"

"Yep. The shoulder still hurts, but I'm not weak like I was. Let's go."


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Daryl sat on the edge of the bed ready to get up and Emma saw the white bandage, now stained with blood. It definitely needed to be changed. "Wait before we head down, I need to replace that bandage and you need antibiotics too," she told him.

"Might as well get it out of the way," he agreed.

Emma found her pack that contained the supplies that the doctor had given her. She laid everything on the bed, before she went into the bathroom to wash her hands. She wasn't worried about getting any of his blood on her, she just didn't want to do anything that may cause an infection. When she was done she peeled the tape off his skin that held the gauze pads in place.

It was her first experience with a bullet wound so she didn't know what to expect. Emma removed the gauze pads and slowly pulled them away from his skin. The dried blood made them stick to him. Then she took the packing out of the bullet hole. Daryl winced when she pulled it out. There was still fresh blood on gauze and the wound began to lightly bleed again, but Dr. Carson had warned her that this may happen until the hole closes.

Emma wet some of the gauze and cleaned around the hole removing the old and fresh blood. Then she took some antibiotic ointment and placed it on a new pad. She needed to pack the wound again and she expected that may hurt.

"How are you doing?" she asked Daryl. He had been completely quiet so far.

"Fine."

She could not tell with his simple answer whether he really was doing okay, or if he was suffering through her ministrations. "I have to pack it again, so this may hurt," she warned him.

Daryl gritted his teeth in anticipation and he wasn't disappointed. It felt like his raw muscle was being shredded. His hands curled into tight fists that gripped the bedspread and his entire body tensed, but Daryl never uttered a sound.

Emma instantly felt him tense up and hated that she was causing him this pain, but she didn't have a choice. The hole needed to heal without leaving any pockets, so packing was the only option. The process only took less than a minute, but to Daryl it felt like forever. He still didn't complain.

"All I have to do is cover it and we're done," Emma told him. Daryl instantly relaxed knowing the worse part was over. Two four by fours were tapped into place and the dressing was officially changed. Emma handed him two antibiotics and he downed them easily. The shoulder was back to viscously hurting again.

Daryl took the bottle of pain pills off the nightstand and popped one; he considered doing another when Emma stopped him. "You just had one not too long ago, don't take another," she advised him.

He knew she was right, so he placed the bottle back on the bedside table. "Thanks," he told her forcing a smile. "Let's go eat," he said standing up carefully.

"I'm sorry it hurt."

"Don't worry about it," he told her. It was not her fault, it was the prick's that shot him fault and Dwight would pay the price at some point. Daryl dropped a gentle kiss on her forehead and nudged her to the door with his good arm. "I'm starving, let's go."

The both headed down the hall and then the staircase with Emma ahead of Daryl. Going down the stairs, Daryl no longer felt winded and he was stronger, but he wasn't back to his old self at all. He still had a fair way to go. He knew it would be a while before he could lift his heavy crossbow, but then it hit him he no longer had it. Dwight had stolen it…again. He would get it back this time for keeps, plus his bike. When he was feeling up to it, he would go back to where he hid his motorcycle and bring it back.

Once they were downstairs in the kitchen, Emma threw together a quick breakfast of oatmeal while Daryl watched on. It was late morning and the house was quiet. Everyone must be out of the house. As they ate together at the table, Emma imagined that this big beautiful house was just theirs and their lives were normal again. It was a crazy wishful dream of her and Daryl living in his upscale house and raising a family.

After cleaning up the dirty dishes they went outside to sit on the front porch. They sat together on the swing and Daryl lit up a cigarette.

"You're still smoking?" Emma asked him.

"When I can. Can't always find smokes."

Emma rolled her eyes. The only real thing they ever fought about was his smoking. She had always begged him to quit. Looks like somethings never change.

They sat outside for a while enjoying the fresh air and each other. Daryl was telling her all about Alexandria when Rick and Tobin walked up to the house.

"Hey," was Daryl's typical greeting.

"Feeling better?" Rick asked.

"Yep."

"Good, let's get Michonne and talk about hiding weapons and food. There's no time to waste," Rick suggested. It was bad enough that they were in the position they were in, but he would be damned if he gave everything away to Negan. Rick completely blamed himself for being too overconfident and underestimating the Saviors. His arrogance had gotten Abraham killed and put them all in jeopardy, even Carl. If anything had happened to Carl, Rick knew he would lose any of the sanity he had left. His kids were the most important things he had in this world.

Daryl got up off the swing and followed Rick and Tobin inside. Emma had already told him that she would stay outside. She didn't feel comfortable being involved in the discussion as she felt too much like outsider. She hadn't even been there twenty-four hours yet.

Rick had Michonne join them and the four of them sat down at the table to strategize. Rick wished Glenn and Abraham were there. He always looked for their ideas and opinions. Whether or not Glenn was coming back to Alexandria was unknown and Abraham was simply gone. Rick also wanted to get Aaron involved too. He was smart and their direct link to the original members of the community.

The Saviors could arrive at any minute to take the half share and Rick didn't want them to literally get half of what they had, he needed to retain some control. "We need to hide weapons first and food second," he told the group. "We have to come up with places really fast that they won't look if they search us. We do this until we can figure out how to wipe their asses out. Any ideas?"

Suggestions were tossed out and rejected until they agreed on two locations – the church and Jessie's old house. Rick remembered that Jessie had told him about a special access panel in Sam's closet that he wanted to check out before saying anything. They would pull up the floor boards under the alter to hide the weapons. The carpet that was there, plus the alter itself, would help to hide the work they needed to do. Jessie's house would need to be thoroughly searched for the right place, including Sam's closet.

Tobin left quickly to get started on the church, while Daryl, Rick and Michonne got up to head to Jessie's house. Rick pulled out a set of master keys an unlocked the front door. No one had been inside the house since Jessie and her two son's had died the night of the walker invasion into Alexandria. It felt closed up and unused, which is what he wanted for the Savior's to see.

Rick was sad about what happened to Jessie. He had genuinely liked her and was started to pursue a relationship with her when the tower fell taking down the wall. All hell broke loose after that. He realized after her death that the two of them would never have worked out, especially with the problems that both her sons had. He'd never forgive Ron for shooting Carl that night and blinding him in one eye.

Michonne was a much better fit for him. She got him and knew everything there was to know about him, he didn't have to explain why he did what he did, she understood. She also didn't hesitate to call him on something that she didn't agree with. He could have been with Michonne for months if he had only opened his eyes sooner to what was right in front of him. She fit in his life and those of Carl's and Judith's perfectly.

They quietly entered the empty house and looked around. To anyone else it looked like they had just left and were due back any minute. It looked lived in, but you could feel something was off.

Michonne was the first one to speak. "Rick, why don't you look upstairs and Daryl and I can look around down here?" she suggested.

"You okay with that?" Rick asked Daryl.

"Yep. Let's get this done."

Daryl looked around downstairs going through all of the rooms one by one. Michonne was following him so they missed nothing. The more he looked the more pissed off he got that they had to do this. The war they were fighting should be with the undead, not with the living. Technically, he and Rick didn't start the problems with the Saviors. That group that stopped him, Sasha and Abraham on the road did. Blowing them to bits shouldn't have been as much fun as it was. The leader had been an asshole and he ended up in a million different pieces along with douchebags with him. The only thing he regretted was all of the motorcycles that got incinerated, he would have liked to have one of them.

"Hey Rick," he called up the stairs. "Got nothing good down here, how 'bout you?"

"Actually, I found a great spot. Come on up to Sam's room," Rick told him. While he and Jessie hadn't been together that long, she had told him more about the drunken rages that Pete would go into. Not only had she put a lock inside Sam's closet so he could lock himself in and hide, she had found by accident, a panel in the closet that came out, and there was a storage space behind it. Maybe it was for hiding or just a unique place to store items, but it would work.

It had taken him a little while to figure out how it opened, but he finally did. It was basically non-detectable unless you knew what you were looking for. Jessie never did tell him how she found it.

Rick closed the panel so he could show Daryl how it looked. Michonne stood off to the side as Daryl entered the room. He was slightly out of breath from the stairs, but did his best to hide it. "What ya got?"

"Jessie had this closet set up for Sam to hide in when Pete got drunk. She installed a lock on the inside for him, but at some point she discovered this." Rick pressed in below the corner of what looked like molding on the left side of closet wall and the door popped open. "It looks perfect for what we need."

Michonne and Daryl both peered into the closet and it looked like the opening could easily fit the length of an automatic weapon. Rick then closed it and they saw how it wasn't noticeable at all.

"If we pile up some of Sam's junk in front of it then this looks like a kid's messy closet. Good find," Daryl told him. "How much are we going to need to hide without them suspecting anything?"

"Good question," answered Rick. "We need to minimize without looking like we did. I say the armory is our next stop."

The three of them spent the rest of the afternoon deciding what to hide and what to keep. They did the same thing with the food. Everything was going to be split up between the two locations and now that they knew what they were doing, it was time to start to move the supplies to Jessie's house. Tobin was still working on the floor in the church.

Michonne noticed that Daryl's face was pale and he was leaning against the wall. She touched Rick's arm to get his attention. "Look at Daryl," she told him. "He's hurting and you and I both know he won't admit it."

Rick nodded his agreement and headed over to his friend. "Hey we got this, why don't you head back and take it easy?"

"I'm fine."

"You're not."

"Am."

Rick knew he wasn't going to get anywhere with a stubborn Daryl. The important decisions had been made, so they only needed to move the weapons and food supplies that they had chosen. He didn't need Daryl for that. Rick looked over and caught Michonne's eye and shook his head. She headed over to Daryl as Rick went to talk to Aaron who along with a few other Alexandrians were assisting in the relocation.

"I ain't going anywhere," Daryl told Michonne as she approached him.

"You sure are stubborn," Michonne laughed. "Now what good do you think you are doing us here? We have able bodies to move the guns and food supplies. And frankly, you only have one good arm so you won't be any help to us. We got this, Daryl."

He hated not being able to help. It made him feel weak and worthless. "I could still…supervise," he said trying not to let his anger at his disability show.

"What now you're trying to take my job?" Michonne teased him. "Go on, Emma's been by herself all this time and you know she doesn't really know anyone yet. Rest up and then show her around. We need you strong and with this we don't need you anymore. Okay?" Michonne understood Daryl pretty well and knew he would stay until he passed out unless she forced him to go home. Emma would be the perfect excuse to get him back to the house to rest.

"You gonna make sure that everything we talked about gets moved?" he asked her stressing the word everything.

"I will personally see to it, okay?" Michonne told him. "I got it Daryl."

"Alright, but if you need me for anything, you'll come get me?"

"Of course, but we're okay. Go find Emma, I bet she's very bored by now."

Daryl started to leave and turned back to Michonne. "Thanks," he told her before heading home.

Rick joined her as they watched Daryl leave. "How'd you get him to go?"

"A little honesty and a little guilt," she explained smiling at Rick. "Told him we really him to regain his strength and that Emma was most likely bored to tears by now being by herself. I think that's what got him going more than anything." Michonne hesitated for a second before asking Rick," Did he ever talk about her?"

"Not a word. You didn't know him in the beginning, but he had a chip on his shoulder the size of a damn mountain. He was angry all the time and cared about no one but himself. I got to know him after that mess with Merle in Atlanta. We certainly didn't start off on good terms at all, but slowly he realized that he needed us as much we needed him. He's still the loner he always was, but he now puts everyone ahead of himself. It was interesting to see him and Emma together. Brought out as different side of him I had never seen. He actually looks happy"

"You're right he is happy around her and I would never have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself," Michonne agreed. "I think finding her again he'll become a different man and I'm looking forward to seeing that."

"Me too," said Rick. "Now let's get this shit moved to Jessie's house. The sooner it's done the better I'll feel." Rick leaned in a dropped an unexpected kiss on Michonne's lips and went to grab an arm load of guns.

Their relationship was a surprise for her, but it made so much sense that she didn't understand why they hadn't gotten together sooner. Michonne watched Rick leave the armory with Aaron and the weapons they were taking with them. She was enjoying her time with him and hoped it would lead to something more. Only time would tell.

Michonne headed over to the church to check the progress that over there as they had no time to waste trying to stay ahead of Negan. Even though they were facing a showdown with him and the Saviors shortly, there was a lightness in her step as she thought about Rick and the family that she now considered hers. She had found her happiness amongst the uncertainly of the apocalypse.

* * *

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 **A/N -** Thank you to al the new story followers/favs. Glad you'e enjoying GONE. Check out my other stories if you haven't already. And a big thanks to everyone that takes the time to leave a comment. I love to know what you are thinking!

WW


	24. Chapter 24

Daryl walked into the house really tired. He hated looking weak to anyone, but in reality he was exhausted. He wanted his body to heal faster than it was capable of. Daryl didn't see Emma anywhere so he went upstairs to their room to look for her, but the room was empty when he opened the door. He stood there for a minute trying to figure out where she could have gone, when he heard laughter coming from down the hall.

He followed the sounds and found Emma sitting on the floor in Carl and Judith's room, playing with Judith. Daryl leaned up against the doorframe and watched them having fun and giggling. Emma was a natural with the toddler. Only when Judith saw Daryl and reached out for him, did Emma notice that he was watching them.

"Hey," he said smiling at her. This was the first time he had thought about them having kids. It would have been a normal progression in their relationship if they had gotten married, but he really hadn't ever thought about it. He had such bad parents, that he wondered even if he could have been a good father. He certainly knew what made a bad one as he had seen that first hand. Emma would have been a wonderful mother.

"Hi," she responded. "Judith and I are having some girl time, aren't we?" The toddler giggled as Emma tickled her belly. "Enid came by to see Carl and since I wasn't doing anything I volunteered to watch Judith while they went for a walk. You know how young love is."

"I knew what young lust was, love didn't come around until I was much older," he told her. The sexy smile he flashed her sent tingles throughout her entire body.

"Are you finished with Rick?"

"They kicked me out. We made the decisions, it's just moving the shit now and I can't do that. When's the kid comin' back?" Daryl asked.

"Should be soon. How's the shoulder feeling?" Emma had noticed the stiff way he was holding his right arm. "Should be past time for pain pills and the antibiotics."

"Yeah, it's being a bitch. I'll go take some now. We got any food?" His stomach was growling.

"Yes, we do. Judith and I made a big casserole for dinner and I kept some of the pasta separate. You go take your pills and we'll go down and heat it up for you." Emma scooped up Judith and walked over to Daryl. The little girl's arms reached out to him and he took her from Emma.

Judith wrapped her arms around his neck and laughed and then she planted a wet kiss on his cheek. Emma put her hands on her hips and cocked her head. "Looks like someone's after my man," she teased tickling Judith. "Not gonna happen little one, he's all mine."

Emma went to take Judith back from Daryl and the little girl hung on tightly to his neck. "Well, looks like she's made her choice, but I bet Daryl doesn't have applesauce waiting for you downstairs like I do. Does Judith want applesauce?"

Suddenly the little arms that held tightly onto Daryl extended out to Emma. "I'm thrown over for applesauce," he grinned handing the toddler back. "I'll be downstairs after I take the meds." Daryl dropped a kiss on Emma's lips and on Judith's head before heading back to their room.

As Emma headed downstairs with Judith, she wondered what type of parents she and Daryl would have made. They never talked about having kids, so she wasn't even sure he had even wanted any, but he was very good with Judith. It may be a conversation for the future.

Emma was heating up food for Daryl in between feeding mouthfuls of applesauce to Judith. The little girl loved it. Just as she was pulling the plate out of the microwave, Carl came back with Enid. He thanked Emma for watching Judith and together with Enid, they took her outside in her stroller.

"Where's lil ass kicker?" Daryl asked coming into the kitchen.

"Carl came back and he and Enid took her out in the stroller. Why do you call her that?" Emma asked placing the plate of food in front of him.

"It was a miracle that she survived being born. Rick's wife died because of it. She didn't get a name for days, cause Rick was too fucked up over losing Lori and we needed a name. That was my suggestion, cause she's a tough kid."

Emma laughed at him, it was so his style of thinking. "You ever think of having kids?" she asked him.

"Nope. I never thought I would even get married…that was until I met you. Guess it woulda been sumthin' we woulda needed to talk about if we had gotten hitched. Not sure I know what being a good Dad is all about. I wouldn't want to mess the kid up like I am," he admitted. Daryl shoved a couple mouthfuls of food in.

"I've watched you with Judith and you are great with her. She loves you. I think going through what you did with your parents showed you what not do, not everyone learns that. I know you did. I think you would have made a great father," Emma told him resting her hand on his.

"What about you?" Daryl asked Emma. "Do you want kids?"

"Yes, I always did. I wanted to show my child what love from a parent should be like. Children should be cherished not thrown away," she told him quietly. All these years later that her parents could give her up so easily and never look back still bothered her. It was one of the many reasons she and Daryl fit so well. They could understand the frustration and anger they each had toward their worthless parents. None of them should have ever been allowed to have children, with the types of abuse they subjected Daryl and Emma to.

She wiped away a lone tear. "Now, who knows? I don't feel I could keep a child safe from this world, so is it fair to have one when dying is so easy to do?"

Daryl got up from where he was sitting at the counter and pulled Emma into a strong hug. "I understand what you're sayin' and I agree. Rick almost lost Judith and that about killed him, not sure I could go through that again. Losing you was a fuckin' nightmare, if it was my child…I don't know what I would do."

Daryl tilted Emma's chin up so she was looking at him. "I missed you today," he told her dropping a lingering kiss on her plump lips. "I want nothin' more to stay here and talk to you, but the pills kicked in and since I was already tired, I need to lie down. Come upstairs with me?" he asked her.

"Of course," Emma said. "Let me clean up first and I'll meet you up there."

It didn't take her more than fifteen minutes to clean up the mess from his meal, but when she got into the room, he was sound asleep on the bed. Emma crawled in next to him and decided to take a nap too. It reminded her of their weekends off when they lived together. Usually on Sundays, they would take an afternoon nap, which always seemed to lead to them both ending up naked.

Emma wished she knew what she could do to get over this fear she had. Until she did, it would hurt her relationship with Daryl especially if he had no idea what was holding her back. As much as she wanted him and knew he wasn't like any of those men that hurt her, she just couldn't get past being intimate with him again. She needed to tell him, but she didn't' know how, so Emma would continue to hide it from the man that loved her. She closed he eyes and drifted off wishing everything had turned out differently.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

Daryl woke up and felt Emma beside him. It was a feeling he was still getting used to after them being separated for so long. He loved her warm curvy body snuggled up next to him and out of habit he rolled on his right side to face her. That was the wrong thing to do and it sent stabs of pain from his shoulder down to his toes.

"Fuck!" he groaned and he quickly changed to lying on his back. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

"What happened?" exclaimed Emma as she woke up to his cursing.

"I rolled onto my god damn shoulder," he told her. "Fuck that hurts."

Emma automatically got up and filled a glass with water from the bathroom. Then she got a pain pill out of the bottle and handed it to him along with the glass. He downed it quickly. "Another," he told her.

"Umm, I don't think so. Why don't you wait until you see if that one works first?"

"When did you become my keeper? It's fucking killing me Emma, give me another pill." Daryl knew he wasn't being fair to her, but his shoulder hurt like hell. One extra pill was not going to make him an addict, but it would make him feel a hell of lot better.

He never told her about the drugs he did with Merle before her met her. He had stopped a few years before, but for a long time he and Merle were causal druggies. It wasn't anything he was proud of and when he finally got his shit together, he never touched another pill, smoked a joint or took anything that was not necessary. Merle never understood why he stopped. Merle never wanted more for himself then what they had, Daryl did.

Emma glared at him holding the pill bottle. He had no reason to talk to her that way. She knew he was in pain, but she only had his best interest in heart. "Fine. You want the pills, here they are," she told him throwing the bottle at him.

Daryl easily caught it in his left hand, but watched her storm out of the room slamming the door behind her. "Good job, asshole," he berated himself. He knew he had to make things right with her, but first he had to take care of his shoulder. Daryl popped the second pill and waited until they started to kick in.

With the edge taken off the stabbing pain, he left the room in search of Emma. He didn't have to go far as her found her sitting on the front porch swing. Their eyes met and he could see that she was still furious at him.

"Sorry I yelled," he told her sitting next to her. "But I don't need you to babysit me, Em. I'm okay."

Emma knew that she had overreacted, but she was sensitive to drug use. She had lost her parents to it and didn't want that to happen to Daryl. "I know and I'm sorry I threw the bottle at you. That was childish of me. Good thing you still have fast reflexes."

Daryl chuckled at her comment.

"Just understand where I am coming from, I lost my parents to their drug addictions and I don't want to lose you," she started to tell him before he interrupted her.

"Em, I was shot just a few days ago. I'm not taking these because I want to, I need to. I'm not going to become your parents. I promise you." Daryl understood now better where she was coming from. Sure she overacted, but so did he.

"I know, I'm sorry." Emma gave him one of her beautiful smiles that always had him questioning why someone as gorgeous as she was, would settle for him. He was a lucky man.

Daryl kissed her and the same desire he always got whenever he touched her or kissed her flowed through him. He couldn't wait until they could have sex again. He just wished he knew when that would be. Emma was being very weird about that and he couldn't figure her out.

She pulled back from the kiss first. "Take me for a walk. I really don't know much about Alexandria."

"That we can do," he told her.

They both got up off the swing and headed down the stairs and into the quiet street. Emma slipped her hand into Daryl's' as they walked past the houses that made up the community. He explained that everyone contributed to living here in one way or another. A large amount of people did guard duty on the watch posts. Some worked construction to enlarge the complex and fix anything that broke. People did supply runs and there was assorted other jobs that needed to get done.

Daryl told her that when they had initially come there a woman named Deanna was in charge and ran the place. His group had fit in as normal contributors, but now they ran it. Deanna had died during the big walker invasion and Rick was a natural leader.

When they came to an unoccupied house, Emma suggested they sit down for a moment. After a few minutes of silence, she asked him the question that had been on her mind for a while. "Daryl, what happened to Merle?"

He was not expecting that, so it threw him for a minute. "Before I tell you that, I think you need to know what it was like back then for us...for me."

"Sure, however you need to tell it is fine with me," she told him. She kissed his bare shoulder to show her support.

"After I couldn't find you and we had to leave town, I was in a really bad place. Merle fed off that, you know how he was, Em. He was his own worst enemy and mine. We drove around trying to find a safe place, but nothing ever worked. We had heard of a place to go outside Atlanta that was supposed to be safe, so we headed that way in my old blue truck. Instead we get stuck in a fuckin' huge traffic jam that went nowhere. People in the cars around us started hangin' out and talkin' to each other and Merle was playing nice with them. I just stayed in the truck. I didn't want nuthin' to do with nobody." Daryl had started to chew on his fingernail, something Emma knew he did when he was uncomfortable.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," she told him.

"Naw, it's okay. You're the only one that ever knew us before all of this," he said. He appreciated her offer more than she knew.

"A bunch of cars that had been stuck together turned around and we decided to find our own safe place. How they let Merle and me go with them I never knew? I'm following an old RV and all Merle can talk about is that we gotta rob these folk of their weapons and food. You know I was messed up, cause I was going along with it. Anyway, we find a hillside to set up camp by this quarry. It was Carol, her dick of a husband and her daughter Sophia. Then there was Rick's wife Lori, Carl their kid and Shane. He was a cop with Rick. He was our biggest problem. Glenn was there, Dale, Jim, T- Dog, Andrea and her sister and a bunch others." Daryl stopped to remember what it was like back then.

He and Merle were lucky that they needed men, so he figured that's how it was okay for them to join the group. They certainly didn't fit in -the lowlife rednecks with the families and the cop. Shane was the only cop initially until Rick showed up. Daryl remembered hating most of them. It's wasn't what they did, but what so many of them had with them – family and that bond. Sure, he had Merle, but that was nowhere near the same. He had missed having Emma with him more than he could have ever imagined. During the day, he tried his best to put her memory away and his anger ruled him. At night, he couldn't control his dreams and she was with him every single night. Often he would wake up with tears on his cheeks, and he'd quickly wipe them away before Merle could see. That would have made his life a more of a living hell than it already was.

Now so many of the people from that camp were dead. Glenn, Carl, Rick, himself and hopefully Carol were the only ones left. He had changed so much from how he was back then. Hell, he was a different man than when he was living with Emma.

"You didn't mention Rick," Emma said breaking his reminiscing.

"He wasn't part of the group then. Hell, his wife and kid though he was dead. Anyway, there was a supply run to Atlanta and Merle went. I was hunting for deer and squirrels in the forest. Apparently Merle was more of a fuckin' idiot than normal, cause he got left there handcuffed to a pipe on a roof. Glenn found Rick in Atlanta and apparently some bad shit went down with Merle and they left him. When I got back I found out what happened I went off on them all. I still hated the world, so instead of knowing what moron Merle could be, I tried to take it out on Rick and Shane. I was lucky they didn't kill me."

Emma looked at him with wide surprised eyes. "Why would they do that?"

"Because I was being a dick and it was easier to blame Rick for abandoning Merle than to blame Merle. I pulled my hunting knife on him fully intending to cut him, but Shane got me in a head lock first. Weird, cause Rick and me are really close now. He's like the brother I shoulda had instead of Merle." Daryl took a deep breath before going on. Memories were hard. "We end up going back to Atlanta to get my brother. It was just me, Rick, Glenn and T-Dog. When we got there, Merle was gone…all except his hand. Em, he cut off his fuckin' hand to get out of the handcuffs."

Daryl watched as her hand went to her mouth in shock. "He cut off his hand?"

"Yep. It was just sitting there on the roof. I never saw Merle again for a long time. I stayed with this group of people and it ended up the best thing I ever did. We lost people along the way and gained some. It wasn't until our group had a conflict with another group, that I knew Merle was still alive. To make a really long story short and a lot of Merle fuckin' everything up, he ended be ousted from his big group, but no one in my group wanted him there 'cept me. He had tried to kill too many of them, but I couldn't leave him Em. When it came down to it, he was blood and as much as I didn't want to leave Rick, Glenn, Michonne and the other's I had to."

This was more than Daryl had talked in a really long time, but Emma could always get him to loosen up. He was getting to the part of the story he hated. He looked over to Emma for emotional support and the sweet smile she gave him, was all that he needed.

"We left together…me and Merle, "Daryl said continuing the saga. "Rick begged me to stay, but I knew I couldn't just abandon Merle. He was a self-centered, rotten douchebag who never knew when to shut his fuckin' mouth, but he was all I had left for family. I didn't have a choice."

Daryl told Emma how he quickly realized how much that each of them had changed, but in completely different directions. He didn't want to go back being like Merle, so after only a couple days, he couldn't take his brother anymore. Finally, they had gotten into a big argument and Daryl left to go back to Rick and the group. They were more of a family than Merle ever was. They respected him and counted on him and he needed that back, so he went back with Merle dogging his heels. When they got back to where the group had been living, Daryl had found out that they were under attack by the people that Merle had been with. They helped them survive the attack and Merle stayed, but no one was happy.

Emma knew what Merle was capable of, so she could only imagine how he badly he behaved. She had never known a grown man to never give a shit what he said or who he hurt by it. He had hurt Daryl more times than she could count and for that reason alone she never liked him.

"I'm almost at the end," Daryl told Emma. " _Thank-fucking-God_ ," he thought to himself.

Daryl continued explaining to Emma how they had all decided that they needed to get rid of the leader of the other group; he was behind all the hate for them. He called himself the Governor and he was a psycho bastard. In the end, it was Merle who went to do the job himself without telling anyone. "He sacrificed himself for the group…for me," Daryl said choking up. "When I found out what he was doing, I went after him. He tried, but he wasn't enough. I found him eating from a dead body…he had turned. I had no choice but to put him down when he came after me. Besides leaving town without you, it was the hardest thing I had ever done."

Daryl was trying to hold back his tears, but when he saw them streaming down Emma's face he just lost it. They held onto each other while they cried and grieved together. Daryl mourned the brother he lost and Emma's heart broke for Daryl having to ultimately kill his only brother. As much as Emma disliked Merle, she never wished for him to die.

Killing walkers they did every day, but killing a family member that had turned was horrible. She wouldn't have wished that on anymore and here the man she loved more than anything else had to do it without her support.

"I'm sorry I wasn't with you," she whispered to him.

"Me too, but you're here now," he replied his coarse voice thick with emotion.

They stayed hanging onto each other for a while until Daryl was able to pull himself together. Then they headed back to the house arm in arm knowing they had each other to rely on. As close as Daryl was to Rick, they didn't talk about personal stuff. That wasn't a guy thing to do, but with Emma he had always had someone to listen to him and support him. It was good to have that back. In fact it was better than good, it was fuckin' awesome.

* * *

 **A/N- Loving all the new followers! Thanks for reading GONE. Love hearing from the readers, so keep the comments coming! Walking Addiction thank you again for such high praise. I very much appreciate it.**

 **Today was a short chapter, so here's another bonus one for ya!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

Two weeks after Emma and Daryl talked about Merle, everything was still status quo with them. Morgan and Carol had not yet returned to Alexandria. Maggie and Glenn continued to stay at Hilltop and Daryl was still taking a lot of cold showers and he was about at the end of his rope.

He hadn't pushed Emma about the non-sexual aspect relationship at all and he was finding this to be extremely hard and frustrating. All they ever did was kiss and cuddle, and while that was nice he needed it to go further. He wanted back the relationship they had before the world crashed down on them.

He was going to have to talk to Emma about it tonight when they were alone. He wasn't looking forward to it and knew he'd probably fumble over his words and screw it up, but he had to try. This wasn't normal and he had to get to the bottom of this, but he had Alexandria business to take care of first today.

Daryl was on his way to meet Rick at the supply pantry. Heath and Tara had just come back from their long run. It should have been a two week stint, but it lasted closer to three. It was good to finally have them back safely. However, neither knew what had happened in their absence. Tara had to be told that Denise was dead. No one was looking forward to doing that.

Having Carol or Maggie here would have helped. Females tend to need each other in devastating circumstances. Daryl hoped that Rick at least had Michonne there when they told Tara. He really didn't want to have to do this.

Daryl was striding up the street when Rosita caught up with him. "I hear their back," she said.

"Yep. I'm headed here to meet Rick so we can talk to Tara. I sure as hell ain't looking forward to this," Daryl told her. "Was my fault that Denise died."

Rosita grabbed his arm and made him stop walking. "It was not your fault Daryl. She wanted to go and she knew it was dangerous. If anyone is to blame it's Dwight's fault. He shot her, not you."

"He was aiming at me! And it was my fuckin' crossbow. How could it not be my fault?" he argued.

"It wasn't your fault, so stop being so hardnosed about it. Yes, we were both there, but that freak Dwight shot the bolt, not you," Rosita explained. She knew what he was feeling, because she felt the same way. "Hey, I know you feel guilty…I do too, we were both there and we were the experienced ones. We should have kept her safe, but shit happens in this world now and there was no way to know the Saviors where there. It was just bad luck."

No one knew how much blame Rosita was putting on herself, not even Daryl. It had been her idea to cut through using the train tracks, but Daryl said no. So she had to do it anyway and beat them to the intersection wit

h a smile. That convinced Daryl to go that way and that's what killed Denise. If she hadn't done it, then Daryl wouldn't have considered it and Denise would be alive today.

Rosita wasn't sure what her place was in this group anymore. After Abraham broke up with her for Sasha, she felt lost. Training the Alexandrian's to fight and defend themselves was not enough for her. She wanted to prove to the group that she was worthy of being there without Abraham. Taking the tracks made sense, but Daryl knew bad things happened to them along the train tracks, so he took the other way. Her desire to prove herself worthy cost Denise her life and Alexandria their only doctor. This was Rosita's fault…completely.

"I'm coming with you to talk to Tara," Rosita told him as they started to head down the quiet street again. "I was there too and I know what loss is like, so she'll need someone like me to help her."

" 'kay," was all Daryl said. He was glad that Rosita was with him. She would be a help and she understood. Just as they reached the pantry, he turned to her, "Thanks Rosita. Rick and me were going to do this alone, but having you here will be a big help."

Rosita flashed him a sad smile and they went in to find Rick so they could break the devastating news to Tara.

* * *

Emma had found her niche in Alexandria. After talking to Rick and Daryl, it was decided that she would take over cooking duties for the house and people who couldn't cook or themselves. She was her own version of Meal on Wheels as she used an old child's wagon to carry the food around in. She had taken the time to talk to those she had to cook for and try to find out what they liked and didn't like. Emma had always enjoyed cooking so this was a fun job for her.

The creativeness she needed to have with the unique ingredients in the pantry had her coming up with some unusual combination that usually worked. With the people back from an extended supply run, Emma was looking forward to seeing what they brought in. It was good timing, as their supplies were getting quite low.

Suddenly Daryl, burst through the front door out of breath. "They're here. The Saviors. Fuckin' hide, Em. Now!"

Everyone had expected the Saviors to come for their share of the supplies much sooner than this. It was over two weeks since that horrible night that Negan had laid down the law. Rick, Michonne and Daryl had discussed what would happen when they did. The one thing that Daryl was adamant on was that they could never see Emma. If anyone recognized her it would put her in jeopardy and there was no way Daryl was going to do that.

Emma quickly turned off everything on the stove and threw it down the garbage disposal. If it looked like someone was cooking and they weren't around, it would raise suspicions. She piled the pots in the sink as dirty dishes meant nothing.

"Hurry!" Daryl shouted at her as he kept on eye out the window. He could see Rick and Michonne talking to about a dozen men.

"I am! I am!" she told her heart beating so hard it was about to jump out of her chest. Then they both ran down the hallway and up the stairs to their room.

Daryl and Tobin had built a hiding spot for her in their closet, just like the one they found in Sam's room, but it was bigger to accommodate one person. Daryl got to the room first and had the panel off, so Emma could just slide right in. The latch was on the inside with her, so she had control of it. Before he closed her in, Daryl kissed her deeply on the lips.

"I'll be back as soon as I can to let you know it's safe," he told her.

"You stay safe and don't do anything stupid," she said. He could be impulsive and that was the last thing she wanted.

Daryl didn't respond, but put the panel back in place. "Daryl promise me you want to do anything stupid!" she yelled through the panel. "Daryl!"

"Can't promise nuthin'," he finally answered. "Lock the fuckin' panel, Em. Now!"

As Emma flicked the corner locks in place, she heard him messing up the shoes and clothes to make the closet looked lived in. Then there was silence and she knew he was gone.

Emma felt around the floor and found the flashlight they had stored there in preparation of her having to hide. She turned it on and looked around her small room and was grateful that she was not claustrophobic. It was literally the size of a large box. She had two blankets and pillow in there along with some food and water. Lastly there was a container if she had to go to the bathroom. She knew she'd use that only if she was desperate. Now all she could do was sit and wait, praying everything went okay with the Saviors.

Daryl walked up to where Rick, Michonne and a few other Alexandrians were talking to the men that had come. Everyone was armed. His sharp eyes hadn't missed a thing as he approached them. Dwight was talking directly to Rick and Daryl's hands clenched into fists as he joined them. Hatred radiated out of every pore as he stared at Dwight.

He hated making mistakes and that he hadn't killed the prick when he should have, had been a huge one. Daryl never took his eyes off Dwight once he joined the tense group. The still unloaded van full of supplies was nearby. The signal that the Saviors were approaching came as they were talking to Tara and Heath, so nothing had been able to be put away. They most likely would lose most if not all of that haul.

Rick and Dwight were arguing over what they were going to give the Saviors. Dwight wanted more than what Negan had told them. Daryl knew he was trying to show he was in charge, not Rick. All Daryl could do was glare at the ugly weasel's face trying to make him uncomfortable. That he had Daryl's crossbow slung across his back, was equal to him spitting in his face and it pissed him off completely. He'd like nothing more than to tackle him right there and beat the shit outta him, but that would definitely cause a bigger problem than they already had.

Someday….somehow…he'd get the crossbow back and Dwight would pay…with his life. That Daryl was one hundred percent sure about. At least he had his bike back. A week after he got back, he convinced Aaron to drive him out to where he hid the bike. Luckily, it was still there, and now it was safe inside Alexandria.

"I wanna see your supplies and weapons," Dwight demanded to Rick. "I got no reason to take your word on anything. We don't trust anyone,"

"We sure as hell ain't trusting you either," Daryl retorted. "We don't have to show you squat."

"No you don't," Dwight responded with an evil grin made even worse with his damaged face. "But if you don't, we'll just kill one of you. Simple as that. What do you say Rick, you gonna be stupid and listen to Daryl here or are you gonna show me what I want to see?"

Rick knew where Daryl was coming from, but he had to play the game for now. At some point when they were ready, they would get their revenge. Now was not the right time. Rick caught Daryl's furious eyes and silently told him to back off. They had fucked this up once, and he had no intention of doing it again.

"Follow me," Rick told him. When all of the Saviors took a step, Rick put up his hand. "No, not all of you. Just you and one other, that's it. You're just looking everything over first, and then we deal."

Dwight agreed and took one of the armed men with him. Daryl stayed watching the other men along with several of the guards they had on duty. Michonne went with Rick.

They went into the food pantry first. They were low on supplies and it showed. That was the truth.

Dwight walked around the shelves before stopping back at Rick. "It's pretty skimpy in here, Rick. Looks like that van full of supplies came back at the right time…for me. Let's see your weapons."

Rick would rather sacrifice food than weapons and they had the weapon room manipulated to help them. Empty racks had a light coating on dust in them, like they've been empty for a while. A fake sign out sheet said who took what weapon out that day so it would be another reason it looked empty. They had hid the good stuff and would bring them out only when they needed it.

Dwight crossed his arms as he surveyed the armory. " _Either they do well with not a lot of firepower or something was up_ ," he thought to himself. He wasn't sure which to believe.

"I expected more in here," he told Rick.

"So did I when I first got here," Rick said matter-of- factly. "For a community of this size they had a handful of weapons and barely any ammo. Hell, they didn't even have guards watching the perimeter. This place was so weak, I was surprised that they never had any problems. I'm in charge now, so we've been increasing the weapons, but it's still not near what I wanted," Rick lied to Dwight. He had to get him to believe that they were low on guns and ammo. Their existence counted on it.

"And I should just take your word on that? I'm not stupid." Dwight wanted to see what type of reaction he could get outta Rick.

"Listen, I only took over here a couple months ago and you know how hard it is to find any type of weapon anymore plus the ammunition that goes with it. We got what we could get, but there's been no time to stockpile. This plus what the guards have and our side arms, is all we got." Rick sent up a silent prayer that Dwight was dumb enough to buy it.

The Savior mulled it over briefly. Ultimately, he had to answer to Negan, but he was pretty sure he had plan that Negan could live with. "Fine, we take half of what's here including ammo and the entire van. Anything less means someone's gonna die."

Rick knew they could take these men out easily, but that would bring down the wrath of the entire Savior operation on them and he wasn't ready for that ...yet. He knew he had to agree even though it was the last thing he wanted to do.

Rick looked at Michonne first, before answering Dwight. They were as attuned to each other as Rick and Daryl were. Words weren't always necessary to say what they were thinking.

Michonne didn't want Rick to agree to the plan, but she knew he had to. They weren't ready to take them all on right now. She also knew that Daryl would not be happy either. His hate of Dwight and the Saviors went the deepest.

"Fine…for this one time only you get the van plus half here. Don't expect that next time," Rick told him.

Dwight just smirked at Rick thinking he pulled one over on him. It took all of Rick's will power not to shoot him where he stood as he watched Michonne load up a cart with the guns they were handing over. Soon, Rick would get his revenge on the Saviors. He just needed a fool proof plan first, and then he would personally make sure they all were dead.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

Daryl was not in a good mood the rest of the day. He was pissed off at everyone – Dwight for showing up, Rick for giving everything away and Emma for not letting him touch her. It all was hitting him at the same time. The angry look on his face just made everyone steer clear of him as no one ever wanted to be on his bad side.

When he let Emma out of the closet, she could tell something wasn't right. He had a look that she hadn't seen in a really long time. Once she crawled out of the closet, Emma stretched her muscles. It was very cramped in there.

"Did it not go well?" she asked.

"Only if you consider giving away that whole fuckin' van full of food a good thing!" he snapped at her.

"Maybe Rick didn't have a choice," Emma suggested.

"Of course there was a fuckin' choice! Wiping out those assholes when they came inside the gates was the choice! This place is so god damned fucked up!" Daryl shouted.

Emma was surprised at the vehemence in his voice. She had never seen him like this. "Daryl, just calm down. I'm sure that Rick…"

"Don't you tell me to calm down," Daryl said his voice low with anger. "You know nothin' about this place or me anymore. And I sure as hell don't know you. So don't go spouting off on shit you don't know."

His words startled her. Who was this man? The Daryl she knew would never talk to her that way. She was not going to let him get away with it.

"Fuck you, Daryl," she spat at him.

"Like that's ever gonna happen again." He knew he was too angry to talk to her about this, but his mouth wasn't shutting up.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that my girlfriend, who still says that she loves me, won't let me fuck her or even touch her. The Emma I used to know was as horny for me as I was her. What happened to her, cause you sure as hell ain't her!"

Daryl didn't wait to let an astonished Emma answer him. He stalked from the room and Emma knew he had left the house when she heard he front door of the house slam. The roar from the engine of his motorcycle let her know he was leaving Alexandria. Emma ran after him, but all she saw was the back end of the bike passing through the open gates. Then he was gone.

Emma made it as far as the living room and crumpled into a heap. She and Daryl had small arguments before, but nothing like this. She understood they had been apart for a long time and they each had changed, but she didn't recognize the man that spoke to her this way.

Michonne had heard the loud voices coming from their room. The slamming of the door and the sound of the motorcycle leaving was a sure sign that not all was well with the newly reunited couple. When she wandered into the living room, she saw Emma crying on the floor.

"Are you okay?" she asked Emma squatting down in front of her.

"I don't know," Emma cried. "I think he just left me."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Michonne offered. "I may have a better insight to Daryl than you do. You guys were apart for a really long time."

"I think I need to, but not here."

Michonne suggested they go up to Emma and Daryl's room as it looked like he wasn't coming right back. Emma agreed and the two of them headed upstairs. They sat down on the loveseat in Emma's room and Michonne asked the first question.

"I heard him yelling from Judith's room. Why was he so mad?"

"I know he was upset at Rick for giving away the van, but I told him that Rick had to have had his reasons. He did, right?" Emma said.

"He did. I didn't want to lose all that food either, but they threatened to kill one of us if we didn't. If it came down to a fight today, we would have won, but that would have brought Negan down on us hard and we aren't ready to take all of the Saviors on again, not yet. Rick has to think about the greater good. Daryl hates them and what they did to him, Abraham and Denise, so his judgment is a bit clouded," Michonne explained.

"Who is Denise?" Emma wondered and what Denise had meant to Daryl.

Michonne told Emma what had happened to Denise and what she meant to the community. Knowing Daryl the way she did, she told Emma that most likely he blamed himself for her death.

"If he was pissed at Rick, why was he yelling at you?" Michonne asked.

"Ultimately he's frustrated with me and I don't blame him. I just don't know what to do." Emma hung her head in embarrassment. How was she to talk to a stranger about this when she couldn't even tell the man she loved?

"Do you want to tell me about that or is it too personal?"

"Oh God Michonne, it is, but I need to talk to someone. I'm afraid to tell Daryl and that's killing us." Emma could feel the tears starting to fall again. She wiped her eyes with her hands before continuing.

"Before all of this craziness happened, Daryl and I had a very …let's just say healthy sex life. In the years we were apart things happened…to me, that weren't very good and Daryl doesn't know." Michonne didn't say a word letting Emma continue at her own pace, but she suspected what was coming.

Emma told her how over the months then years she was always changing the groups of people that she was with due to deaths, people just leaving or because she was alone. At one point it was her and just a married couple in their sixties, when the small camp they had was overrun by four awful men. They killed the husband right in front of them and repeatedly raped the wife and her for days. The other woman ending up dying and that left just Emma. She was finally rescued by three strangers who heard her cries and figures out what was going on. The two men and woman killed the rapists and took her under their wing. A few weeks later they all joined the Saviors.

"I love Daryl with all my heart, Michonne. He can kiss me and hold me and I have no problem, but when he tries to touch me, I can't handle it. I just told him I wanted us to get to know each other again and I was hoping I could get over this, but that's not happening and he doesn't understand." Emma looked up from the floor to Michonne. "I don't want to lose him."

"You never told him, did you Emma?" Michonne asked.

Emma shook her head no.

"Oh Emma, you need to or how else will he understand? I'm sure he thinks that you don't want him anymore and that has to hurt him, right?"

"I'm afraid…afraid once I tell him that he won't want me anymore. How could he? I'm damaged goods. No man would want that," Emma said completely believing that to be true.

"I'm surprised at you," Michonne said. "You say that you love Daryl, but apparently you don't know him very well."

Emma looked at Michonne in surprise, "What do you mean?"

"Daryl is as loyal as a person comes. He constantly lays his life on the line for others so he cares deeply. He mourned you for years, I see that now. Men and women…well… will be men and women and that means they will hook up at some point. I've watched practically everyone in our group at some time or another do that, except Daryl, Eugene and obviously Father Gabriel. Eugene is just too damn odd, but Daryl always stumped me. He never showed interest in anyone. Sure he's close to Carol and even Beth when she was alive, but it was never romantic or sexual. I know now that he was still trying to get over you, so I am absolutely positive that he will not abandon you. He's going to be pissed at those men for what they did and for you not telling him. You need to give him a chance to deal with this and understand where you were coming from. You owe him that." Michonne didn't want to lecture Emma, but she wasn't giving Daryl enough credit. She had certainly been through a horrible experience, but if she kept it to herself Emma certainly would ruin what she had Daryl had.

Emma didn't answer Michonne right away as she took in everything that she said. It made perfect sense and Daryl deserved to know why she was not allowing them to be intimate. She wasn't being fair to either one of them.

Emma looked at Michonne with tears in her eyes. "You make perfect sense, but how to I tell a man like Daryl something like that?"

"Tell me somethin' like what?"

Neither Emma nor Michonne heard Daryl enter the room. He saw the fear on Emma's face when she quickly turned to face him and knew something bad had happened. "Tell me what, Em?" he repeated coming closer.

"I should go," Michonne said quietly. She leaned over give Emma a hug and whispered to her, "Tell him. He needs to know."

Michonne grabbed Daryl by the arm and he stopped to look at her. Daryl glared at her furious that she would stop him. "Listen to her. Just listen to her," Michonne told him softly before releasing his arm and leaving the room. The door closed quietly behind her.

"You came back," Emma said to Daryl. Her eyes were sad and weepy.

"Course, I did. I had to blow off some steam, that's all. What's going on Em? What do you need to tell me?" Emma had Daryl completely confused. Why was she talking to Michonne and not him?

"I owe you an apology," she started to say.

"Hell no, I owe you. I had no right to talk to you the way I did. I was pissed as hell and took it out on you. I'm sorry, Em," Daryl apologized.

Emma looked at her hands before raising her eyes to meet his. "You're frustrated with me and have every right to be. I know you want our sex life back and I don't blame you…I want it too. We were so good together," Emma sighed with a slight smile.

"We were fuckin' incredible together," he laughed trying to break the tension in the room. "We really were… so are you going to tell finally me what the hell is going on with us?"

"I am…it's just hard for me. Please be patient with me while I get this out. Okay?" she asked.

"Of course. Anything you want, you know that." Daryl took her hand in his and stroked the back of it with his thumb. "Take your time, Em."

Daryl had known something was wrong with her the moment she sidelined their sex life. He could understand waiting a day or two or three, but not weeks and she had been back with him for a couple of weeks. He didn't know how to show her he loved, wanted and desired her when she wouldn't let him really touch her without getting all weird about it. He just had no idea what it could be and prayed it wasn't that she didn't want him anymore. That would completely crush him.

"It was hard to survive after everything went bad," Emma said quietly starting to tell her story. "You would have thought the living would band together, but it wasn't always that way."

Emma told him of her existence throughout the time they were separated and he had heard much of this already. Daryl let her talk, but wondered why she was going over this again.

"After a really bad time when a decent size herd took out most of our group, I was left with just an older couple. It was odd that we survived as we were not the strongest people in the camp, but we did. We didn't have much left, but we made due for a couple of days. We had a low campfire going one night, when the camp was invaded by four men. Four disgusting horrible evil men." Emma hesitated as she got ready to tell him what happened next.

Daryl's heart started to beat faster and faster. He didn't want her to tell him what he knew was coming. He did his best to keep his expression neutral, but it was hard.

"They killed John, right away. He never stood a chance. Then …they…grabbed Helen and me and I tried to fight them off Daryl, I really did, but they were too strong and there was too many of them." Emma started to cry and Daryl pulled her into his arms.

"They raped you," he said his voice cold as steel. It wasn't a question, but a statement. His Emma, his beautiful, happy Emma was raped by animals. How had he not figured this out before? All the signs were there and he was just too stupid to see it.

"Over and over again. It went on for days until three people rescued me." Emma pulled back from Daryl's embrace. "Three good strangers heard my cries, by then Helen was dead too, and they killed the men. I owed them my life," she told him still crying. "Steve, Billy and Sharon I can never thank them enough for what they did, even though right after all I wanted to do was die. They wouldn't let me… Sharon wouldn't let me."

Daryl remained quiet as Emma spoke about the assault. He had never felt such rage before, not even for Dwight or the Governor or even Negan. His hands were shaking he was so angry that he finally had to get up and pace the room. He wanted to break something or kill someone for what Emma had gone through. He finally settled on staring out the window and banging his fist on the molding. It wasn't nearly enough.

Not nearly.

Emma stared at Daryl's back as he looked outside. He wouldn't look at her and she knew what that meant. He didn't want a woman that was used and abused as badly as she was. She was nothing but damaged goods.

"I'm sorry," she said meekly.

Daryl turned to look at her not realizing how his expression looked to her. The coldness of his eyes literally through a chill into the room and Emma shivered. He was disgusted by her she knew. She felt tightness in her chest that almost caused her to gasp as she felt her heart breaking into a million pieces.

"You're sorry?" he growled at her. "Why the fuck are you apologizing to me?"

Emma's tears started to fall faster and Daryl realized he was coming off all wrong. He slide next to her on the sofa and caressed her cheek with his hand. "Em…there's no need to apologize to me," he told her in a softer voice. "This is in no way your fault. Yeah, I'm angry, I wanna tear someone's fuckin' head off for what happened to you, but I'm not mad at you. No way."

"But I should have told you and I didn't," she admitted.

"Yeah, you should have, but I know this had to be really hard for you. I should have figured out something like this had happened when you jumped every time I touched you. I'm not mad at you at all. I'm pissed as hell at those fuckin' assholes that hurt you. As long as they are dead, and they are right?" he asked her.

Emma nodded yes.

"Good or I'd have to find them and kill them myself." Daryl once again pulled Emma into his arms and held her. He couldn't imagine the horror she had lived through, but he was going to help her get through it one way or another. He loved her, so he'd do anything for her. "Whatever you need from me, it's yours. I know I'm not good at talking about a lot of stuff, but I'll help you anyway I can. I love you Emma, you have to know that right?"

"How can you still love me after what I told you? Vile animals touched me and fucked me over and over again, how can you still want this?" Emma pointed at herself as pulled away from Daryl. She couldn't look at him when he changed his mind about her.

"Yeah, they hurt you…bad, really bad, but I love you Emma. Nothing, absolutely-fucking-nothing can ever change that. From the very first second I saw you, you turned me on like no one ever had before. You still do. I want you as much now as I ever did and what you went through doesn't change how I feel about you. All I want to do is help you through this and maybe together we can fix this, but even if we can't…I'll still love you." That was the most honest thing Daryl had ever said to anyone and he meant every word.

Emma looked at Daryl in surprise. He had never said anything like that to her before. His eyes that were hard and cold, just moments ago were now soft with love. He really still loved her. She never expected that, she certainly underestimated him. He was also not one to open up about his feeling this way and that he did spoke volumes.

Emma felt the fear inside her simply go away. He was not going to reject her as she thought he would, he still wanted to be together with her… to be a couple while she worked through her anxiety. Emma was bound and determined to find a way to do that. Daryl deserved it and so did she. They would find a way to get through this so they could resume the intimacy that they both missed. There had to be a way and Daryl would help her find it. She was certain of that.

* * *

 **A/N -** Thank you to everyone that continues to read GONE. Been picking up a lot of new favs and follows. Thanks to jeanf, imlovinfanfic, WalkingAddiction for always leaving me a review. Very much appreciated! Also thanks to BeautifulDizasterDixon for yours too!

Sometimes it takes a big blowup to get things out in the open and that's what happened to Daryl and Emma. Let's hope he has patience with her.

Thanks again everyone!

Walker Witch


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

The next few days the people of Alexandria concentrated on enriching their food supply. Losing the van full of food hurt the community; so many more people were out on supply runs than usual. They found they had to go further and further out to find what they needed. It took a lot of food to feed the fifty plus people inside the walls and every day it was getting harder and harder to do that.

Daryl was one of the people who normally didn't do the supply runs who were out daily trying to bring back food. Emma worried every time he left and didn't breathe a sigh of relief until she saw him exit the vehicle he had left in.

Emma had volunteered to go on a run, but Daryl vehemently denied her. He didn't want her to have a chance meeting with any if the Saviors and be recognized. There was no way he going to lose her again. Emma was not happy with his overprotectiveness, but she put up with it, as she knew it came from his love for her.

On any given night Emma was cooking for anywhere from six to a dozen people just within their group, then she had up to ten others that she cooked the evening meal for. She was feeding almost half the population of Alexandria on some nights. Cooking kept her busy and made her feel useful.

One afternoon she took a walk around the houses and noticed a plant that caught her attention by a vacant house. When she got closer to it, she recognized it as a chive plant and in fact there were three of them all lined up in a row. Emma was excited. Fresh herbs would help her favor her meals that at times really needed help. She kept checking the planting bed and found a large sage bush along with a tarragon plant. These were even better finds.

Emma hurried home to grab a pair of shears so she could cut some of the chives for breakfast. This would make the powdered eggs they had found so must tastier when she cooked them in the morning. No oatmeal for everyone tomorrow, this would be a big treat.

After cutting the herbs she wanted to take back with her, Emma was on her way back to the house when she saw Maggie walking down the front steps to the sidewalk. Glenn and Maggie had finally returned, but Maggie was still quite depressed about losing the baby. Emma hoped to get to know her better as Daryl considered her a close friend.

"Hey Maggie, wait up," Emma called out.

"It's Emma, right?" asked Maggie. "What can I do for you?"

"Daryl told me that you've been trying to grow vegetables without much success. Could you show me where? I'm doing so much of the cooking here, having fresh vegetables will help. Look I just found herbs growing down the street." Emma showed her the newly cut chives and tarragon she still held in her hand.

"Sure," Maggie said. Together they walked to where Emma saw white PVC pipe set up to be used as a trellis, but there wasn't anything growing below it. Maggie signed sadly, "See nothing grew."

"The seeds must have been no good. Did everything come from the same place?" Emma asked her.

Maggie smiled softly as she remembered when Glenn had given her the seeds he had found. "Glenn found then during a run. Nothing grew from any of them. Not the tomatoes or the cucumbers or the squash."

"There was definitely something wrong with the seeds. We need to have the people going on runs keep an eye out of any type of vegetable seeds. Once we get this going, it'll feed us well," Emma told her with a friendly smile. "I'll ask Daryl to spread the word."

"What you girls doing?" asked a voice. When Emma turned around she saw it was Maggie's husband Glenn.

"Talking vegetables and coming up with a plan," Maggie told him. "We need new seeds and Emma's going to ask Daryl to have everyone keep an eye out for them. I hope they can find them. Maybe we can enlarge the garden…" Maggie kept on talking to Glenn but there was finally life back into her eyes. She had something she wanted to do. Emma quietly left the couple, but not before Glenn mouthed the words _'thank you'_ to her.

Emma headed back to the house, as it was time for her to start getting the dinners ready for tonight. She had a good feeling that they would be seeing Maggie and Glenn at dinner and it made her happy that they were slowly rejoining the family. Rick called them all family, so while very few were actually related, they all loved and trusted each other as if they were. Daryl was the perfect example that blood didn't mean everything, his family, including his brother, were awful to him. Rick was the brother he deserved and now had. That was family.

Everyone was in a good mood after dinner and hung around the living room of the main house they occupied. Emma worked a miracle with the limited food they had and a touch of tarragon helped the flavors. Since she did the cooking, Sasha, Rosita and Tara did the cleanup, so Emma was able to sit with Daryl and enjoy the conversation.

Emma had felt really good and happy all day. While everyone was still sad about losing Abraham, they were telling stories about him and his unusual way of saying things. Maggie had wandered off to the kitchen, so Glenn was telling the guys about the 'Bisquick and pancakes' comment he had said to Glenn.

"He's talking about making pancakes and I'm like what the hell is he talking about. Is he hungry? Then it finally clicked. How did he come up with making pancakes as an analogy for making a baby? Man, he was something else," Glenn laughed and everyone else joined him.

The girls from the kitchen joined the rest of everyone already hanging out and for the first time in a long time, everyone was fairly relaxed and happy. All of their problems from the food to what to do about the Saviors were put on the back burner for that night. They were just a group of friends having a good time.

Maggie and Glenn were the first to leave to head to their room and slowly everyone else went their own way. Daryl and Emma headed up the stairs together leaving just a handful of people still chatting below.

"That was fun," Emma sighed as Daryl closed the door to their room behind them.

"It was. Good to have Glenn and Maggie back too," Daryl said as he sat on the bed to take off his boots.

Emma popped into the bathroom to quickly change into an oversize t-shirt and brush her teeth. She knew she was being silly not changing in front of Daryl, but it still felt awkward being naked. As she brushed her teeth with a very tiny amount of toothpaste, Emma thought about her and Daryl. Unless she did something to help her get past this fear of sex, she was never going to make any progress. Maybe she should try taking some baby steps, she wondered.

Kissing and cuddling she did just fine, but that was simply not enough. Daryl wanted more and so did she. And no matter how patient he promised to be with her, Emma worried that at some point this would drive them apart. Tonight she would try a baby step.

Having made even a small decision as this was, made her extremely happy. She left the bathroom with a gleam in her eye that Daryl noticed right away. Emma tossed her clothes on the floor in front of the closet without a second look, which confirmed to Daryl that something was up. Emma never did that and always gave him hell when he did.

"What?" he asked her warily.

Emma smiled shyly at Daryl and crawled up on the bed next to him as he lay there in his boxers waiting for her to come to bed. She snuggled in between his arm and his chest. His strong arm automatically wrapped around her. Emma kissed him and while she had done that dozens of times since their return to Alexandria, Daryl knew this was different. There was a slight hunger in her that he hadn't sensed since they lived together all those years ago.

Daryl didn't waste a second. He captured her mouth with a soft groan, moving gently at first coaxing a response with his soft lips. When Emma parted hers, he wasted no time in deepening the kiss, running his hot tongue along her bottom lip before slipping past her teeth in search of her own.

Overwhelmed by how right it always felt to be in his arms, Emma slipped one arm up towards his neck and opened her mouth a little wider inviting him to deepen the kiss even more. Daryl didn't need any further persuading.

He wrapped his other arm around her and crushed her against his chest, his hand kneading her back, waist and finally wandering down to her backside pressing her into his hardness.

A familiar ache flared to life simultaneously as the panic started to surge. She wanted him so bad, she was trembling, but he was also the first man to touch her after those awful days and nights where she was raped repeatedly. Those horrid memories started to come flying back and Emma did her best to suppress them. This was Daryl she kept trying to tell herself. This was Daryl.

She tried to concentrate on how good he could make her feel and the love she had for him. Between those thoughts and Daryl's mouth on hers she was able to pull herself off the anxiety ledge.

Emma's t-shirt had ridden up to her hips exposing her panty clad bottom. Daryl placed his hand on her low back and ran it back and forth for a while, and then he slipped it under the shirt touching her baby smooth skin. He didn't feel Emma tense at all, in fact if anything, her kisses intensified.

She took her kisses further and moved from his lips to his face, then to his neck and she then kissed the 'x' he has tattooed near his collar bone. She always loved that little tattoo.

Daryl was getting lost in Emma's kisses as the fiery trail she was leaving all over him was setting him on fire. She was pushing beyond the limits they had gone and he was doing his best not to let his desire for her take over.

His hand continues to travel over her body stroking her back, hips, and buttocks. Emma's hand also was exploring his chest, but not venturing any lower. God, he so wanted her to touch him there, to move lower and take hold of his dick the way she used to. He was sure she could see his erection that was making his boxers tent up. Way up.

Emma kept on caressing and kissing him, so Daryl took that as s good sign. He moved his hand from her back downward so he was cupping her butt again. After lingering there for just a little while, he moved it her hips, then up her side. His forearm brushed her breast. Emma didn't flinch and Daryl wanted so bad to place his hand over it. He was a guy that loved breasts and Emma was blessed to be extremely well-endowed. Before the turn, when they were living together he couldn't keep his hands off her or them.

His fingers skimmed the rounded curve of her breast before he covered it with him palm and squeezed. " _Got that feels fuckin' incredible_ ," he thought to himself and he felt himself get even harder. Daryl turned on his side to get better leverage, but in doing so his hard erection pressed up against Emma's pelvis again

Emma froze. Daryl didn't realize it immediately and he kept massaging her breast while unconsciously pressing himself against Emma.

She could feel the anxiety start to build again and she tried to tell herself this was Daryl and he wasn't going to hurt her, but it kept growing and growing until the panting that Daryl mistook for desire, was actually her not being able to catch her breath. Emma pushed him away and jumped off the bed. She ran into the bathroom slamming the door behind her.

Daryl was momentarily confused, until he realized that he must have pushed her too far. He ran to the bathroom door and turned the handle, but it was locked. She had never locked a door on him…ever. "Em, I'm sorry. Please open the door," he begged.

The only sound he heard was her sobbing uncontrollably inside. Daryl slide down the door so his back rested against it as he sat on the floor listening to the most important person to him in the world completely fall apart and there was not anything he could do.

Daryl didn't move an inch and stayed leaning against the door for what felt like hours. He heard the sobs subside, but still Emma didn't emerge. He didn't know what to do. Should he break down the door, which he would do in an instant, if he felt she was in danger, but he knew she would never hurt herself. That wasn't Emma.

So Daryl did the only thing he could do which was talk to her. It was completely a one-sided conversation, but it made him feel like he was reaching out to her and it was all he could do.

He told her about his life after he and Merle got separated. He talked about the CDC, Hershel's farm, the prison, Woodbury and he kept going on and on. He talked about the people they lost and the new ones that joined. And he told her about Beth, the little sister he never had who had helped change him for the better.

Emma couldn't help the panic attack she had and it completely embarrassed her. This was why she was still hiding out in the bathroom. Once the attack subsided, she couldn't bring herself to face Daryl. Everything had been going so well. She loved him kissing and touching her. Even when he touched her breast, it was good and Emma was thrilled at that. That was better than she expected as after days of being assaulted by those animals, her breasts had been bruised and sore for days. She realized that it was every time she felt his erection against her, it scared he to death.

She had no idea how long she had been in the bathroom, when she realized that Daryl was talking and talking on the other side of the door. Emma couldn't make out all the words so she moved closer to his voice so she could hear him better. Leaning against to wooden door, Emma could hear him perfectly and it was only then that she realized he was telling her about what happened to him and everyone during their time apart. Some names she knew, others she didn't.

He talked and she listened with the width of the door the only thing separating them. Daryl had been through some crazy horrible circumstances. She could hear in his voice when the prison was attacked and everyone got separated, how that devastated him. He had lost the only constant in his life.

He had been stuck with Beth. Here he was one of the strongest paired with what he considered the weakest and she was being annoying. That was until he started to hear what she was saying to him. That night at the moonshiner's shack she made more sense to him about his life than anyone ever did. He never thought an eighteen year old girl could be that insightful.

"After that night, things got better for me, Em. I was in a better place to deal with the shit that went down when I was growing up and dealing with missing you. She didn't know about you, no one did, but she helped me." Daryl stopped talking for a moment. He owed Beth more than she could ever imagine. Her death was nothing but a senseless act. There had been no reason for to die…but she did. Her killer died immediately after by Daryl's own hand.

Emma sensed that all of this was hard for Daryl to talk about, but he did. He was trying to connect to Emma by sharing his life that she missed and she loved him even more because of it. She stood up from the floor where she was siting and unlocked the door.

Daryl immediately got up at the sound of the latch being freed and he saw Emma's pale face as she opened the door. She flew into his arms and neither let go for a long time.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered into his neck where her face was nestled.

"You have no reason to be sorry, Em. We both got caught up, but it's okay. We're okay, right?"

Emma pulled back from him and looked into his blue eyes. She had always loved his eyes. "We're okay on one condition."

"Anything!"

"That this Beth wasn't anything more than a sister to you, because if she was my girls here are on strike," she told him pointing at her breasts.

"C'mon she was like eighteen and I'm forty-fucking-something, no way. There's only been one girl for me …ever and I'm looking at her right now." The smile on Daryl's face showed how relieved he was that everything was still good between them.

"I love you," she told him.

"I love you and the girls too."

Emma laughed at him and pulled him back to the bed. It was still the middle of the night and they needed to get some sleep. She lay in his arms for a few minutes with only the beating of their hearts quietly thumping. "You know I was okay, up until I felt your hard-on against me. If I can just get past that stupid fear that comes on, I'd be okay."

"We'll figure this out, Em, but not now. We need sleep," he said softly to her. "Go to sleep. There's always tomorrow."

"Thank you," Emma whispered before drifting off to sleep.


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

It was a while before Daryl and Emma had the time alone they needed. Rick had done a survey of their food supplies and became alarmed on how low they really were. The daily scavenging trips were not bringing in much at all. He decided he wanted three teams to go out for anywhere from three to five days to search for supplies. This was not the long trips that Heath did with a partner or two, but shorter overnight trips so they could go farther out, but still not be gone too long.

Rick wanted Daryl included in one of these teams. Normally Daryl would not have a problem going, but he didn't want to leave Emma. It was a selfish reason, but in the end Daryl put the greater good of the community first. Glenn didn't feel comfortable leaving Maggie yet and Daryl knew that this was more important than him just wanting to not leave Emma alone. She would be fine.

"How long are you going to be gone?" Emma asked him.

"A couple days, could be more. Rick wants me on a team, especially since Glenn isn't going. He doesn't want to leave Maggie just yet and I don't blame him. I don't want to leave you, but that's for a completely different reason," Daryl told her.

"And what's that?" she purred leaning into him.

"Me wanting to get to know you and your two friends again, that's why," he growled into her ear.

Emma giggled and rubbed her chest against his. Daryl was about to smash his mouth down on hers when Carl and Enid walked in the front door. Instead Daryl shifted so that from the waist down he was hidden by the kitchen counter. His body's response to her purposefully pressing up against him was immediate and hard. There was no way he wanted Carl or especially Enid to see the stiff dick that was clearly visible in his pants. Emma slipped out of his arms and went back to work on the meals she was preparing. She couldn't hold back the big smile she had on her face.

"What so funny, Emma?" Carl asked.

"Just Daryl. He's having a hard time with something that I thought was funny."

"Anything I can help you with?" Carl innocently asked.

Daryl gave Carl a look that clearly said his help wasn't needed. "Okay, no problem," Carl replied and he and Enid headed towards the stairs. "Geez, all I did was offer to help," they heard him say to Enid.

Emma burst out laughing after they went up the stairs. She had to wipe away the tears because she was laughing so hard.

"So you think this is funny, don't you?" Daryl said his voice low and deadly.

Emma knew he was all for show. "Got a problem, Mr. Dixon?" she asked turning towards him.

He moved right up to her so that they were practically touching. "Yep I sure do and it's all your fault. Now I'm going to go upstairs and take a cold shower so I can get rid of this…" he looked down at his pants where his erection was still clearly visible. "…big problem. Then I'm packing my bag and getting the hell out of here before you tempt me anymore." Daryl turned to head up to his room. He took a couple steps away from her before turning back and standing directly behind her.

Daryl whispered in Emma's ear, "When I get back, we've got business to take care of." He kissed her neck and was gone, leaving Emma wanting so much more. She would be lonely without him as she was still felt like a newcomer to the group, but it would give her a reason get to know everyone better. She and Daryl tended to isolate themselves too much at times. They were falling back into old habits.

* * *

The supply run had been successful, but it very nearly wasn't. Daryl, Rosita and Aaron hadn't had any luck at all finding the amount of supplies they needed to bring back and it pissed Daryl off. He was usually good at finding this stuff and it just wasn't happening. After three days the trunk of the car barely was a third full and even that stuff wasn't anything special.

Since they were having no luck in the suburbs, Daryl drove out to the country. He drove and drove and when Rosita or Aaron asked him where they were going, he ignored them and kept on driving. They were going through farm country now, so the houses or outbuildings they came across were few and far between.

Daryl came to a dirt road that looked like it didn't have an end in sight and turned up it. Rosita and Aaron just looked at each other, but didn't say a word. Aaron had learned to trust Daryl's instinct, but Rosita wasn't as sure.

They came to an old white farmhouse that sat on a small hill overlooking barren fields. Weeds were overgrown everywhere and the air had an eerie quietness to it. Daryl stopped the car, but no one moved for a moment.

"Why here?" Rosita asked.

"Don't know," was all Daryl told her. He opened the car door first and the others followed. Everyone got out with weapons in hand and eyes searching everywhere.

"You sure about this?" she asked him again.

Daryl just looked at her and walked to the house without answering. How does he tell them, that it just felt right, without looking stupid? There were numerous building to check, but he would start with the house first. The barn and additional structures would come next.

Before entering the house, they each looked through the windows and saw nothing out of the ordinary. Just outdated furniture and dust...lots and lots of dust. Daryl tried the door knob and the door slowly creaked open. He banged against the door several times seeing if the sound attracted any walkers.

None showed up.

They cleared the downstairs, before heading upstairs to do the same. They found no one. The search of cabinets and closets amounted to almost nothing, just a lot of empty space and dust. Standing in the obsolete kitchen, Daryl remembered a small door he saw off to the side that they hadn't checked. He walked over to it and opened the door slowly. He was greeted by complete darkness and a staircase that lead down.

"Aaron, come here, "Daryl called out.

"What you need?"

"Backup. Follow me," he told him.

Daryl had a flashlight in his left hand and a gun in his right. The air was dank and musty, with a slight chill. It felt like no one had been down there in a very long time. He had the flashlight moving across the room looking for walkers or people. The room was empty …of people that is, but it was filled with shelves upon shelves of supplies.

"Whoa," Aaron said surprised. "Is this stuff still good?"

Daryl walked over shelf lined with cans and checked the expiration date. "Barely, but that's good enough for me."

They walked between the two rows of shelves looking at the items left by the previous owners. There was literally everything you could think of there. The woman must have been either a hoarder or she really believed in stocking up. There was also one whole shelving unit of home canned foods too.

"Are you guys down here?" Rosita called out.

"Yep. Check this shit out," Daryl told her.

Rosita joined the guys in the basement and walked around staring at everything with wide eyes. "How are we going to get this all back? There's no way we can leave it."

"Leave that up to me. You guys pack this up and get it upstairs anyway you can. I'm gonna go work on an idea." Daryl jogged up the stairs leaving them to come up with a plan to get everything upstairs. There wasn't just food there, but shampoo, toothpaste and a bunch of other essentials. It was a great find. A mini grocery store.

Now they just had to get everything back to Alexandria. Daryl wandered over to the run down barn. The door had fallen off the hinges and it was open to the elements. There was a lean-to type overhang on one side of it and that's where he was headed. He saw what he thought was a horse trailer when they pulled in and he wanted to check that out. Sure enough when he looked there was an old trailer that would fit two horses and that would be perfect to transport everything back to Alexandria in.

Daryl took a hold of the hitch at the end and tugged on it, but the trailer didn't move. He tried it again, with no luck. Daryl stood back and looked at the trailer and wondered why he couldn't pull it out. He was a strong guy. Then he noticed the blocks in front of the wheels and laughed at himself.

"Dumbass," he said himself. "That was fuckin' stupid."

He removed the wheel blocks and grabbed the end of the hitch again and pulled. He felt it start to give, so he dug his boots in and pulled harder. Slowly the trailer emerged from the lean-to. The tires were low, but still functional. Best thing was the car had a trailer ball hitch on it so all they had to do was attach the two. It was perfect.

That was how their scavenging trip went from zero to hero within minutes. The last time he had found an unexpected stash like this was with Rick and that ended up in a lake. There was no way in hell he was going to allow that to happen again.

It took the three of them most of the day to load everything up, but by then evening was approaching, so they decided to spend the night at the farm house and head out the next morning. Daryl was more than ready to get back to Emma.

Before they settled in, the barn was searched as was two additional sheds. They took some gardening tools, but there wasn't much around. In the last shed they found what Daryl was looking for. It was a potting shed and he found packets and packets of seeds that Emma wanted. He personally made sure these made it into the car. Everyone had a decent dinner that night and Daryl went to sleep looking forward to getting back home tomorrow.


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N - Posted 2 chapters today so don't** **miss 29!**

* * *

 **Chapter 30**

"Open the fucking gate or you're going to regret it!"

Spencer looked down at the three cars full of dangerous men and didn't know what to do. He wanted to wait for Rick. That was the right thing to do, he just couldn't let these people in. "Rick's on his way," he shouted down, hoping that was true. When he saw the cars approaching he yelled down to Eugene to go get Rick. Eugene took off, but there was no sign of anyone coming to help him.

The ugly guy with the long blonde stringy hair was the one doing all of the talking. " _Why were the Saviors back_?" Spencer wondered. They had just been here a few days ago.

"I'm gonna count to ten and if you don't open this damn gate…" Dwight started to say.

"He's coming," Spencer said interrupting Dwight. "I see him on his way over. Hold tight."

Dwight knew he had to look strong to keep the respect of these men. "Don't you tell me to fuckin' hold tight. Open the damn gate now!" he shouted. He was getting really angry that this kid wouldn't listen to him. The more pissed off he got the redder his face turned and the scars on the left side if his face became even more hideous.

The inside portion of the gate swung open and Rick stood there. His arms were across his chest and his hip was cocked. This was bullshit that they were back. He wasn't letting them in until he knew what they wanted. Behind him stood, Michonne, Glenn, Heath, Tara and a few others. Their numbers where low as only Heath and his group had returned from the supply runs and that had Rick concerned.

"Whadda you want?" Rick drawled trying to appear calmer than he felt.

"I think you shorted us. I want more," Dwight told him.

Rick looked never took his eyes off Dwight. "You saw our supplies. That's all we had. You took the van that was full, that we didn't even have time to unload yet. That was way more that you should have taken. We've met Negan's demands so get the hell out of here." There was no way Rick wanted to give this idiot anything else.

Dwight turned to one of the men and nodded. A shot was fired faster than Rick thought possible and Spencer fell to the floor of the platform…motionless.

"No!" Rick shouted pulling his colt python out of the holster as did everyone quickly raising their weapons. Michonne looked up to see if there was any sign of life from Spencer, but there wasn't. He was the last of his family. Damn.

"You need to know I'm serious here, Rick. Let us in or we'll take out another of you. It's your choice." Dwight knew he had Rick by the balls. He leaned back against the hood of the car with an eerie smirk on his face.

Rick turned to look at Michonne and Glenn. Glenn said, "Do it," and Michonne nodded her agreement.

Rick walked over to the gate and put his handle on the latch. "Not everyone. You and two others. That's it." He didn't open the gate until Dwight agreed.

They started a sweep of the supply rooms first, then each of the houses. With each step…each house, Rick was getting madder and madder. He turned to look or Michonne, but she wasn't there. "Where did she go?" he thought. Then he remembered Spencer. She went to check in him. He was sure of it.

When they got to his house after finding nothing but the bare necessities at all the other places, he was madder than hell. This was his home that he lived in with his family and it galled him to have to show it to these assholes, but he knew he had to. He just wanted them out of Alexandria as quickly as possible. Hopefully, he could convince Dwight that they didn't need to search any further. They weren't hiding anything. Or at least anything that the Saviors would be able to find.

He entered the house first with Dwight right behind him and only then he did he remember about Emma. She was playing with Judith on the floor, but when she saw who was with him fear quickly flashed through her eyes.

" _Fuck! Fuck_!," screamed through Rick's head. He had forgotten about his best friend's…his brother's woman. He had promised Daryl he would keep an eye in Emma and here he was bringing the Saviors right into his living room without any warning to her.

The first thing that flashed through Emma's mind was " _Oh my God, it's Dwight_ ," then she pulled Judith to her to use her to try to hide behind. She didn't want him or the other two men with him to see her face. She didn't know if any if then actually knew her, but she knew of Dwight. He was always trying to appear more in charge than he was. He was just another lackey of Negan's, but everyone knew him. Everyone knew what Negan had done to his face as payback for betraying him.

Dwight had caught sight of the woman on the floor before she pulled the toddler to her. She was familiar he thought, but he couldn't place her. "Check the cabinets," he told his men while he stared at Emma.

"Who's she?" Dwight asked.

"My sister, Jenny," Rick said not skipping a beat. "Jen, why don't you take Judith up to her room until we are done here?"

Emma scooped up Judith and stood up. "Sure Rick," she said hoping her voice didn't echo the fear that engulfed her. Emma quickly got out of the room and up to Judith's. She locked the door behind her and sat the two of them down in the soft easy chair in the room. She was trying not to panic.

Without Daryl here there was no one to warn her about the Saviors. Rick should have, but didn't. What if Dwight remembers her? Or any of the other men? She had lived with them for going on a year, but the Saviors numbered in the hundreds at times so maybe she was safe. Or maybe not.

Emma didn't realize she had tears streaming down her face until Judith started patting her cheek. "Your daddy won't let anything happen to you or me, baby girl. We'll be okay," Emma cooed to the child more for her sake than Judith's. "Daryl, where are you?" she asked the empty room. "I need you."

"Your sister?" Dwight asked. "She don't look like you?"

"Lucky for her, right? Took after our mother and I'm all dad. Now have you seen enough?" Rick asked trying to change the subject off of Emma.

"Yeah. Let's go," Dwight said to the other two Saviors with him.

On the walk back to the gate, Dwight couldn't get out if his mind that he had seen this 'Jenny' before. "She seemed awfully skittish, "he said to Rick.

"Who?" asked Rick. His eyes had been searching for Michonne, but still had not seen any sign of her.

"Your sister."

The lies flowed easily from his lips. "She is. I only found her about a year ago. She was living outside of Atlanta with her boyfriend when all this shit went down. She's scared of men now. From what I can tell, she had some bad things happen to her that she won't talk about." Rick did not know how close to the truth he actually was.

"That kid her's?"

"Nope. She's mine. Why you so interested in my family?" Rick growled at him.

"Always interested in a pretty woman."

"She ain't interested so just drop it," Rick told him. Glenn slid the gate open and the three Saviors walked out to join the rest. "Don't come back, until you're due." Rick slammed the gate closed behind him, then the interior one that hid them from the outside.

A new guard on the platform indicated that the vehicles were pulling out. That was a close call.

"Where's Michonne?" Rick asked quickly.

"At the infirmary with Spencer," replied Eric, Aaron's partner.

"Is he dead?" Rick was sure the young man was killed with that unexpected shot.

"No he isn't," Eric told him. "He's wounded but should be okay according to Michonne. He played dead until we could get him down and they couldn't see.

"Smart." Rick had to hand it to Spencer that was the smartest thing he had ever done. It had most likely saved his life.

Rick jogged to the infirmary and made sure that Michonne had everything under control. She was patching the bullet wound that went through his upper arm, luckily missing the major artery in there. Then Rick literally ran back to his house to check on Emma and his daughter. He was kicking himself the entire way for forgetting about her. Daryl will kill him when he finds out. Well, maybe not literally, but he will be pissed that Rick screwed up.

He ran up the front steps, though the living room and up to Judith's room. He was completely out of breath as he stood outside the door. He turned the handle and found it locked.

"Emma, its Rick. Let me in."

Emma had jumped when she heard the knock on the door, but was relieved when she head Rick's voice.

"I'm so sorry Emma," he said taking his daughter from her arms. "I completely forgot to have someone warn you. They arrived unexpectedly and shot Spencer, so I was all wrapped up in them not hurting anyone else. I'm sorry."

"Is Spencer okay?"

"He was lucky the bastard was a bad shot. He has a through and through his upper left arm. Michonne is patching him up," Rick told her.

Emma sighed in relief that Spencer would be okay. She didn't know him well, but she didn't want anyone to die, especially because of the Saviors. Now she had to ask the question that she dreaded, "Did they say anything about me?"

"Dwight did, but I'm sure you're okay. He wanted to know why we didn't look alike and I told him you took after our mother and me our dad. That was the first thing that came to me," Rick told her.

"It was as good lie. How can he question that I'm not your sister? That was good," Emma replied. The words had flowed easily from Rick without any hesitation. Emma just prayed that none of the men remember her down the line.

The rest of the day was quiet and Emma made sure that she sent dinner over to Spencer. She put him on her list for the week. Keeping busy kept her from worrying about Daryl and she just hoped he would come back soon. When anyone went out beyond the walls, it was always dangerous and you never knew what may happen. Until she saw him with her own two eyes, she would worry about him and his crew.

Emma was wiping down the counters, before heading up to the room she shared with Daryl when Sasha walked into the kitchen to get something to eat after her watch shift. "Let me heat a plate for you," Emma offered.

Sasha was tired so she quickly took her up on it. They made small talk while the plate heated in the microwave. Suddenly, Emma got an idea and wanted to run it by Sasha.

"Can I ask you something?" Emma said.

"Sure. What is it?" Sasha asked.

"Next time you go out for target practice, can I come? I need to learn to shoot better and Daryl's been so busy, so I don't want to bother him," Emma proposed. She had handled a gun before, but the better she was with one the better it was for her and everyone else.

"I don't have a watch shift until four tomorrow, so we could go earlier if you like? I'm not busy and would welcome the distraction," Sasha told her.

Emma told her that would definitely work. She was excited to go shooting with Sasha. It was a chance to increase her skills and get to know another person better. Daryl couldn't be her whole world anymore.

The next day Sasha and Emma went to the armory to choose a handgun for Emma and get some ammunition. Sasha led the way outside the walls to the area where they practiced. She made sure that Emma was familiar with loading and unloading the clip, how the safety worked and made sure she was comfortable with the weight of the gun in her hand.

When the preliminaries were done, they got started on the target practice. Emma very quickly learned to appreciate Sasha's accuracy. Emma took her time with every shot. She wanted to learn how to be accurate and they could not afford to waste bullets.

After a while they took a break and chatted about Alexandria. The afternoon wore on and before she knew it Sasha was due back for watch duty. "Oh damn, I gotta go. I'm on watch in ten minutes," Sasha told Emma. "The time sure flew."

"I want to finish this clip. You go ahead, "Emma replied.

"No, you should come with me. You shouldn't be out here alone. C'mon." Sasha was picking up her weapon and pack. Sasha preferred to shoot a AR-15 machine gun.

"I'll just be a few minutes behind you, I'll be fine. I survived a long time on my own, so I can handle this." Emma ejected the clip and saw she had six bullets left. "I have six shots left. I'll take them and I'll be in. Go ahead so you're not late."

Sasha thought about it a second. "Okay, but if you need us, call out. Alright?"

Emma set up the cans again on the wooden plank they had going across a couple of tree stumps. Instead of standing, aiming then shooting, Emma was going to try something else. Anyone could shoot at a stationary target, so she was wanted to start with her back turned.

She took her time thinking about each shot before whipping around to shoot. She wanted to have everything become automatic, not anything that required a lot of concentration. When walkers were coming at you from all directions, you needed to fast and accurate, slow got you dead.

After the sixth bullet was fired, Emma was happy with her progress. Sasha had taught her how to look down the sight to aim correctly. She was looking forward to showing Daryl how good she was doing. Emma turned around and saw Dwight leaning against a tree smiling at her.

"Hi Emma," he said.

"My name…is Jenny," she told him. Fear started to surge through her. Emma raised her gun at him.

"Please Emma, don't play me for stupid. I know you were a Savior and you belong back with us. You are as much related to Rick as I am. It just took a little bit to remember where I saw you before, but I did. Not likely a guy can forget a woman built like you. No fuckin' way," he said. The grin on his face was eerie with the burnt skin on the left side pulling his mouth down instead of up.

Panic started to overtake Emma. She couldn't let him take her back. "I'll ssshoot you," she stammered.

"You're outta bullets, sweetheart. You and I both know that. Just make it easy on yourself and come with me."

"No! I'm not going anywhere with you. I belong here," Emma yelled.

"You belong with Negan. He's been looking for you. Seems you piqued his curiosity." Dwight said the words that Emma dreading hearing. Negan was looking for her.

Emma quickly looked around for an escape route, but her inexperience telegraphed what she was going to do. "Oh Emma, seems like we're going to have to do this the hard way."

Dwight nodded and before Emma knew what happened, everything went black. Her unconscious body slumped to the hard ground. She never saw the man coming up behind as Dwight took her full attention.

"Pick her up," Dwight told the other man. "We have a present for Negan."

The two men walked through the woods to where they had hidden their car. Emma was dumped into the backseat and they drove off towards the Savior's compound. Dwight figured this would surely put him back in good standing with the leader. Negan was aggressively searching for the green eye beauty with big tits. Dwight was going to deliver her to him on a silver platter.

* * *

 **A/N- it's been awfully quiet here lately. This is getting hundreds of reads a day, but no one letting me know what they think. Nine more chapters to go and she's done. Would love to hear from you all. Thanks for reading!**


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

Seeing the big high walls of Alexandria was a wonderful sight for Daryl. He was glad to be home. He was also eager to get rid of the damn trailer the car was pulling behind it. The tires were so low after all these miles that the trailer was practically riding on the rims.

He flashed the lights of the car to the guard on duty and the gate slowly swung open. As he drove down the deserted road that headed to the supply panty he could feel the drag of the trailer behind the car. The tires were completely shot, but they made it.

Olivia came out to help them unload the full car and trailer. She was very excited by their haul. Eventually Rick and Michonne joined them and with that many people helping, the trailer was unloaded and junked fairly quickly. Daryl left them to sort through the supplies, so he picked up the box of seeds and headed home to give Emma his present.

It was dinner time and Daryl fully expected to find Emma in the kitchen, but when he got there the room was dark and there was no food on the stove. He looked in the refrigerator and saw nothing prepared in there either. Emma never missed having the evening meal ready for them by now. Daryl ran up the stairs to their room calling out for her, but that room was also dark and empty. He got as bad feeling in the pit of his stomach and his hands started to sweat. The box of seeds was thrown on the bed as Daryl ran to find Rick.

He arrived at the panty out of breath. "Where's Emma?" he asked Rick grabbing him by the arm.

"What do you mean?"

"Emma, where is she Rick? She's not in the house and dinner ain't made. That's not like her, where is she?" he asked again getting agitated.

"Calm down, man. We'll find her," Rick told him. He turned to Michonne and asked her when she had last seen Emma.

"Not today. I was with Judith this morning then you and went over ideas in the library about the Saviors and Hilltop. I haven't seen Emma all day," she told the two men.

"Emma? Are you looking for Emma?" Olivia asked coming out from behind one of the back shelves.

"Yeah, you seen her?" questioned an anxious Daryl.

"She and Sasha came by earlier this afternoon to get weapons for target practice," Olivia told them. "Come to think about it, Emma hasn't returned the handgun she took out. Remind her, will you?"

"Sasha should be on watch now," Michonne said.

Daryl remembered seeing her when they came through the gate. She waved at him. "She is. Gotta talk to her." Daryl took off at a run for the watch post. Rick looked at Michonne and then took off after Daryl. He got to the platform seconds after Daryl.

"Sasha!" Daryl shouted.

"I saw you running across the yard, no need to yell. What's up?"

"Have you seen Emma?" Daryl asked again. He was fuming inside. He was tired of asking where Emma was, would someone just tell him!

"We went and did some target practice shooting. She wanted to get more comfortable with a gun. I had to head back for my watch shift and she stayed to finish the clip. She had half a dozen rounds left. Hang on." Sasha turned and yelled over to the guard at the gate. "Hey Adam, when did you let Emma back in?"

"I haven't. The only people to come through the gate after you was the supply run," he called back.

Daryl's blood ran instantly cold. Emma was still outside the walls. "When did you start your shift?" he asked Sasha.

"A little after four as I had to get more ammunition."

"Fuck!" was all Daryl could say.

"Damn, it's after six-thirty now," Rick said looking at his watch. He put a hand on Daryl's arm just before he was about to bolt towards the gate. "Let's do this right. It'll take just a few minutes to get guns to take with us. We need to be prepared."

As much as Daryl hated to waste the time, Rick was right. "Alright." They both ran to the supply room and while Rick always wore his gun, he added extra bullets to his pockets. Daryl grabbed a Glock and four extra clips. Seconds later they were running for the gate.

Sasha saw them coming and already had Adam throwing it open, so they were able to keep running right through it. Sasha watched them until they disappeared in the woods. She was upset with herself. She never should have left Emma out there alone and she should have made sure that she returned. Her head wasn't in the right place since Abraham died and this may have cost them Emma. She was off her game and while it wasn't her job to babysit Emma, they took care of each other. And she didn't do that. She owed Daryl and Emma and apology. She just hoped that she would be able to give it to the both of them.

When Daryl and Rick approached the area they used to target practice Daryl slowed down. His trained tracker's eyes started taking in everything around him and on the ground. He knew he couldn't miss anything. This was one of the few times he had anything good to think about his father. Learning how to track was critical to him and it was the only worthwhile thing he had learned from his old man.

"Someone was standing here by this tree," he told Rick. "Emma most likely would have been right here, but her smaller footprints are blurred. She went down here." Daryl looked around more. What the hell had happened here? "Got heavy footprints here. He picked her up along with the guy at the tree and walked this way."

Rick followed Daryl. Neither said a word as they tracked the people that took Emma. They were following a slightly weaving path through the woods. Daryl heart was racing as he kept tracking the two sets through the underbrush. When he found an elastic tie band with strands of long brown hair wrapped on it, he knew he was on the right track.

"Look," he showed Rick. "That was Emma's." He knew she had left it for him to find. " _Good Girl_ ," he thought.

"We'll find her," Rick told his friend. They had to.

"You don't know what she's gone through, man. She has to be freaking out. These assholes have over a two hour head start on us. I just wish I knew who would've taken her?" Daryl was calm on the outside, but panicking on the inside. He knew he had to rein it in so he could concentrate. He couldn't afford to miss a clue ...a sign or anything that would lead him to Emma. He was not going to lose her again.

Rick had a good idea of who may have abducted Emma. It had to be that asshole Dwight. He showed too much interest in her. "Daryl, I think I know who may have her."

Daryl stopped immediately and swung around to look at Rick. "Who?" he growled.

"While you were gone the Saviors came back. They saw Emma and it was all my fault. I forgot to warn her, man. I'm so sorry. I told them she was my sister, but that mutilated bastard kept asking questions about her. That's gotta be it," Rick explained. Rick had fucked up big time. He would be surprised it Daryl never forgave him. If it was indeed the Saviors that had her, it would be totally his fault. No matter what, he planned on doing anything they could to find her. Daryl had his back more times than Rick could have counted, he owned his friend this and more.

"Dwight? Are you telling me Dwight has her?" Daryl's voice was low and mean. Dwight had taken his bike…his crossbow and now his woman. He was a dead man.

"Good chance. I'm with you until we find her…and we will. We'll get her back," Rick told him.

"Did you know Negan has a thing for her?" Daryl said.

Rick looked at him in surprise, "He does?"

"He does. That's one of the reasons she left them besides finding me. She can never go back. I'm going to kill that fuckin' prick." Daryl turned and kept tracking through the woods. The sun was setting making visibility much harder, but Daryl kept on.

They emerged from the trees and came to a country dirt road. "Tire tracks," pointed Daryl. They got in a car here. Fuckers."

"We still have a little bit of light left and we need a car. Let's head back to Alexandria, grabbed some supplies and a car. When we lose the light, we stop and continue at dawn. "Rick could see that Daryl wanted to keep on going. "Daryl, we need a car. Without one we can't cover the distance we need to. Okay?"

Daryl wanted to keep going, but he knew that Rick was right. They needed a car. As much as he hated it he agreed. They both turned around and ran back to Alexandria, stopping only briefly a few times to rest before running through the gates. Daryl gassed up a car and Rick ran for some quick supplies. They were back out heading for the dirt road in minutes.

Sasha watched them from her platform knowing they hadn't found Emma. She quickly wiped away the tears away that gathered in the corner of her eyes. She didn't want to lose another person, especially when she felt it was her fault.

Rick drove so Daryl could keep an eye on the road. They got back to the spot where the car had been and it was easy to follow the tire tracks on the dirt road even though the light was fading. It got much harder once they turned onto pavement, but not impossible. The roads seldom saw any type of vehicle so the leaves and debris that accumulated on the pavement showed signed of travel to someone who knew what to look for…and Daryl did.

They followed the trail until it was too dark to continue on. As much as Daryl wanted to keep going, he knew this made sense. Rick pulled the car off to the side of the road and turned it off. They hadn't said much during the ride. Daryl just stared out the window not looking at Rick.

"How do you do it?" Daryl finally asked Rick.

"Do what?"

"Love people that can die," he said softly. "Lori died. You have Carl, Judith and now Michonne. How do you handle that?"

"Everything I do is for them. They are the reasons I make decisions a certain way. Family has to come first," he told him. "Daryl…Daryl?" Daryl finally turned to look at him. "You're family too…and I let you down, bro. I'm sorry."

Daryl was quiet for a moment before he turned to his friend…his brother. "It ain't your fault. You have more going on than any of us. I shoulda been there to protect her. I got responsibilities to the group and to her and I'm trying to do both, but it ain't working. Losing her once about killed me, if it happens again…I don't know what I'll do."

Rick knew what Daryl was going through. He had lost his wife and that was the worst thing he had ever experienced. He didn't want the same thing to happen to his friend. No one should have to go through a loss like that, but too many of them did.

"We'll find her. We will Daryl, then we kill the assholes and they'll never be able to do it again. You have my word on that," Rick promised him.

"Thanks," Daryl replied. He continues to look out the window into the darkness. It was good to have Rick by his side. Knowing he could count on Rick meant more to him than his friend would ever know. Daryl had never been able to count on anyone except himself for most of his life. This is what friends did… what brothers did for each other. He also would keep him from acting in impulse instead of thinking it through. He couldn't chance making a mistake. Emma meant too much to him to do that.

"You mentioned that Emma had gone through something that I didn't know about, anything you want to share?" Rick had been curious about this since Daryl mentioned it back in the woods.

Daryl's face got hard and mean. It was an expression that Rick had only seen a handful of times and it was never good.

"She was gang raped for days before she ended up with the Saviors. She's still dealing with it."

Rick was astonished. "Oh shit. I'm sorry Daryl. She never should have had to go through anything like that. No one should. Oh, man." Emma had been through the worse thing anyone could live through and now she was abducted. His heart went out to the two of them.

"I got first watch," Daryl said.

"Wake me up in a couple of hours so I can take over." Daryl turned his head and looked at Rick and then looked back into the night. "Daryl, I mean it. Tomorrow when we find her you need to be alert, so get me up in a couple of hours. You need to sleep."

"Will do," he told Rick. Rick leaned the seat back and got as comfortable as he could. He was out in minutes. They had all learned to sleep when and wherever they could. Daryl stared out into the blackness praying that Emma was okay. She was his heart. He knew it from the first minute he saw her. He would find her if it was the last thing he ever did. He owed it to her. He'd bring her home and never let her go.

* * *

 **A/N - Did I lose all of my regular reviewers? Thanks to the guest that posted and Missy. Would love to hear from everyone...anyone. The more reviews I get, the more people will check out the story.**

 **Thanks for reading everyone!**

 **WW**


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32**

Daryl was able to fall asleep for just a few scattered hours during the night. It helped take the edge off his fatigue, but not his anger. That and the adrenaline he had flowing through him helped keep him going. People were going to die today and he knew he wasn't going to one of them. Daryl looked out the window and could see that the sun was about to come up and he was ready to head out at the first sign of daylight. He was anxious to get going.

Rick was already awake and was rifling through his pack for something to eat. He grabbed a protein bar and handed one to Daryl.

"Gonna take a walk down the road just a ways to get a better look at the trail. I'll be back," Daryl told Rick.

"Okay. As soon as we get any daylight, we can head out."

Daryl gave Rick a nod of his head in agreement and got out of the car. His muscles were tight from sitting in the car all night, so after a quick stretch, he headed for the road. Daryl used his flashlight to scan the debris that covered the unused street and easily saw signs that a vehicle had passed through recently. They were still on the right path. The weather was calm overnight so it didn't do anything to destroy the tracks left by the other car. He continued about half mile down the road, before turning back. It was time to start the search again.

Rick kept his eye on his friend the entire time. He needed to make sure that Daryl didn't just take off on him if he saw something. They needed to do this together. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw him turn around and head back to the car. As soon as Daryl got back in, Rick took off. The sun was barely up, so visibility was difficult, but they still were able to follow the faint tracks.

A couple miles down the road they came to an intersection and Daryl got out. On closer inspection, he could see disturbances in the ground cover on the pavement that led towards the left, so they headed that way. About five miles down the road, they saw a car stopped in the middle with the hood up. They stayed back looking for signs of life, but saw nothing.

Rick slowly pulled the car up behind the vehicle and they both cautiously got out. With guns in hand, they cleared the car, but found nothing. "The water pump went," Daryl told Rick. "They abandoned the car last night."

"Look at this," Rick said. He had a blue bandana in his hand. It was on the floor behind the driver seat.

Daryl took it and brought it to his nose. "Yep. That's Emma's. I gave it to her when she asked if I had another. She kept it in her pocket. Her scent's on it."

"She's leaving us a trail," Rick stated. Emma was a smart girl.

"She sure is," Daryl agreed. He then scanned the area and saw where they headed into the woods. "They went in here. I bet they camped for the night and its early enough they could still be there.

"I'll follow you," Rick said.

Together they went single file into the wooded area off the road. Daryl followed the path the group had carelessly left. They weren't too far in when he could smell the remnants of a campfire. He signaled Rick to slow down and watch. Everything they did from now on was done with hand signals and looks. Slow and steady they approached the camp.

Rick and Daryl hid behind some dense brush and surveyed the campsite. They saw Emma lying on her side on the ground. Dwight was on his back with a knee bent, so he was most likely awake. There was another larger man standing up.

Relief flowed through Daryl. He had found Emma and she was still alive. Thank-fucking-God.

Emma was watching the two men that abducted her. She was trying to think of a way to escape, but the ropes that bound her hands behind her were too tight. She knew that someone from home should have realized she was missing by now. With any luck, Daryl was back and he would come find her. She had complete faith in him. She also knew he would find the breadcrumbs she had inconspicuously left along the way, her hair tie and bandana.

As she struggled to a sitting position she heard Dwight laugh at her. "Having problems?"

"If the ropes were so damn tight I could use my arms better, dickhead," she spat at him.

"Ain't no way, I'm chancing you getting away. You're my ticket up the ladder. Negan's been drooling after you since the night those idiots from Alexandria got captured." Dwight stayed reclined on the ground by the near dead fire. He wasn't in any hurry to start the day. It was still a long walk back to the Saviors main headquarters to give Emma over to Negan. With any luck they'd find another car along the way. He wasn't looking forward to walking the entire way back.

"D, I'm gonna go take a dump," the other man said.

"Shit, just make sure it's far enough from camp that I don't have to smell your shit, Jake," Dwight told him.

"Yeah, yeah," the big man told him. He wandered through the trees until he found a log that was down. That would give him a good place to squat. He dropped his pants so they were down around his ankles and perched himself on the log.

He wasn't looking forward to the long walk back to the compound. The damn car broke down and that screwed up their plan. "Man, today is gonna suck," he said.

"You got that fuckin' right asshole," Daryl said as he slit the man's throat. He was dead within seconds. "Yep, today just wasn't your day."

One down and one to go.

Emma knew that she should be afraid, but she wasn't. Dwight was a weasel and he would get his due. She had no intention of being handed over like a prize to Negan. All she had to do was sit and wait for Daryl, so she planned on delaying them as much as possible. When the car broke down, she almost laughed at Dwight. He was cursing and kicking the car as the water spewed all over the road. All she could think was, " _Ain't karma a bitch_."

"What you smiling about bitch?" Dwight asked her.

"You don't know how much trouble you are in. When Daryl finds you, you'll be lucky there's enough left for a walker to eat. You are so dead!" she hissed him.

Dwight started to laugh at her. "You mean you hooked up with that loser? Emma, you could have done so much better, but I ain't worried about Daryl. There's nothing he can do to touch me. He's too stupid and careless. I'm not worried about him at all."

There was a loud 'whoosh' and Dwight looked down at his chest. There was a hunting knife sticking out of it, right through his heart. He looked up in surprise and saw Daryl walking out of the brush. Dwight's eyes were wide with fear. He couldn't breathe as he felt the blood pouring out of his body.

"You should have listened to the lady, asshole," Daryl said strutting up to him. "You took my bike, I got it back. You took my crossbow, I'm getting it back now, he said as he picked the crossbow up off the ground. "But when you took my woman, you made the biggest mistake of your fuckin' life cause now you die. No one takes my girl and lives." He put his hand on the handle of knife and looked Dwight right in the eyes. Daryl's face gave away his hatred of the man and Dwight knew he was dead. Daryl's hand twisted the knife and the Savior fell back in a bloody heap… dead. Daryl pulled the knife out of his chest and wiped it on the dead man's pants.

Rick had already cut Emma loose from her bonds and she stood up rubbing her sore wrists. Daryl ran over to her and pulled her into his strong arms. They held into each other without saying a word.

Rick gave them some space by going through the men's belongings looking for anything useful. He pocketed a couple of guns with additional rounds of ammunition.

"Are you okay," Daryl asked Emma.

"I am. They didn't hurt me at all."

"Are you sure?" Daryl asked her again. Emma was strangely calm for someone who had been abducted.

"Weird, but I'm fine. Maybe later I'll crash into a heap of tears, but I knew you'd come for me. I never doubted that for a second," Emma told him. They kissed long and slow, until Rick cleared his throat.

"Let's get the hell outta here," he suggested. He handed Daryl back his weapon and the trio headed through the woods to the car.

Emma sat upfront with Rick and Daryl was in the back seat behind her. He kept a hand on her shoulder the entire trip back. No one spoke for a while.

"We gotta come up with a plan to get rid of Negan, Rick or we'll have the Saviors hanging over our heads forever," Daryl said from the backseat.

"That group is so damn huge, I can't come up with an idea that would work," Rick replied.

"I learned something from Dwight that may help," Emma offered.

"What was that?" Rick asked her.

"Apparently there will be a meeting of Negan and all of his Lieutenants in a couple days. Dwight wanted to make a big deal of handing me over to him then. It's at an old church that is near their basecamp, you'd have them all together in one spot," she explained. "Taking them all out at once would throw the group into chaos."

Rick looked into the rearview mirror and caught Daryl's eyes. He knew they were both thinking the same thing. It could be done. They had the ways and means to do it. Now they just had to find this church and their nightmare with Negan would go away.

* * *

 **A/N - Would love to know what you all think?**


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

Daryl didn't let out a sigh of relief until they were safely back inside Alexandria. He leaned back into the seat and relaxed for the first time since their search for Emma began. She was officially home. Michonne and Sasha ran out to greet the car. They had both been waiting anxiously all night for them to return. Sasha pulled Emma into a hug.

"I'm so sorry," she told Emma. "I never should have left you alone. It was all my fault." Tears threatened to fall from Sasha's big brown eyes.

"No, it was my fault, Sasha. Not yours or anyone else's, but all mine. I'm just lucky that I had Daryl and Rick to come after me." Emma knew having a guy like Daryl in her life was the best thing that ever happened to her. Not only did he love her unconditionally, but he was loyal and completely trustworthy. The skills he learned before the world fell apart were invaluable now. She knew that he tracked her all the way from where she was doing target practice to the campsite where they found her. She owed him her life. He already had her heart.

"What happened?" asked Michonne.

"It was the Saviors that took her," Rick said.

Daryl growled low in his throat. "That prick, Dwight took her intending to give her to Negan. Apparently he has a thing for Emma, but there's no fuckin' way in hell he's getting what's mine. Not Emma. Not ever." He hitched the crossbow higher on this shoulder. "It'll be a cold day in hell."

Michonne looked at Rick and they smiled at each other. They both got a kick out seeing this side of Daryl. "Glad your back," Michonne told Emma giving her a hug.

"Awesome we get to eat again!" The group looked up and saw Carl holding Judith on the porch. Leave it to a teenage to think with his stomach. Everyone burst out laughing.

"Not today, Carl. We'll let Emma rest up first," Rick told his son.

"Awe," Carl moaned. "No one else can cook."

"I can cook," Michonne reminded him.

Carl looked at his father and they both started to laugh. "Okay, neither of you will ever see a meal from me again!" Michonne said pretending to be insulted. She knew she could not cook.

"Thank God!" Carl laughed before heading inside with his sister.

Daryl looked over at Emma and saw the fatigue setting in on her face. She was starting to crash. "C'mon, let's head inside." He put his hand on the small of her back and nudged her forward. He wanted to get her to their room as soon as possible.

Emma just followed his lead and before she knew it, their bedroom door closed behind them. Daryl could feel her body start to shake so he wrapped her in his arms. "You're okay," he whispered to her. "Don't ever scare me like that again. I think I have more gray in my beard now because of you. He hesitated for a moment before adding, "Your safe, Em."

Emma had been so proud of herself that she had really been strong throughout this whole mess, but once she got back home she could feel it all start to fall apart. She was glad that Daryl saw it too, and he just took control so she would not embarrass herself in front of their friends. She was finally back in the quiet and safety of their room. She could fall apart here and she was.

The sobs started the second she felt his strong arms wrap around her. Daryl moved them over towards the bed and lay down on the soft mattress with Emma still in his arms. They stayed that way until the tears eventually stopped. That took a long time.

"Thank you for rescuing me," Emma said softly to Daryl. She wiped the remnants of the tears away with her hand.

"Why you thanking me? Of course I was going after you. I won't let anyone take you away from me…not again. No fuckin' way," he told her.

Emma lifted her head and smiled up at him. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me."

"You got that backwards," he told her completely believing his words. "Still can't figure out why you still want an old redneck like me. Never made any sense, but I sure ain't complaining. I got the better end of this deal."

"Stop putting yourself down. I happen to love my not-so-old redneck." Emma kissed his lips. The taste of him always made her want more. They kissed for a few minutes and it was Daryl that pulled back first. Emma needed to rest and put sometime in between her abduction and them getting hot and heavy. They still had yet to figure out how to fix her anxiety when it came down to having sex.

Emma nestled her head onto his shoulder. "Do you think you'll be able to do something about Negan?"

Emma didn't see the corner of his mouth lift up. He and Rick had a big surprise for Negan. "Yeah, I do. We need to find that church you were talking about. Any ideas?"

"Yeah, I think I know it. They have a couple spots they use for meetings, but I was at a church a couple of times for the cleanup. Those men are absolute slobs and the women had to clean up the buildings after they get together," she explained.

"You know the layout of the church? Entrances and exits?" This was more than he could have hoped for. This would give them the upper hand.

"I can draw you a diagram of the building. It's about five miles from basecamp off Route 27 about a mile out of Hillsdale. The town is abandoned," she told him. "That may help find it. We were transported in a van, but I paid attention. You taught me to always look for landmarks in strange places." Back when they were living together they would go on walks down trails through the local state parks or just through the woods. Daryl had taught her how to keep track of landmarks and anything that would help her not to get lost. Emma never forgot that.

"God, Em that's great. I want you to rest first, and we can work on the map later," he told her. This was the information they needed. Daryl knew he needed to get together with Rick as soon as possible to plan. They didn't have much time. "When did you think they were having this meeting?"

"From what they were saying last night, it should be day after tomorrow. That's why Dwight was anxious to get back." Emma yawned as the absence of sleep from the night before really was hitting her.

Daryl brushed the hair out of Emma's tired face. He could see her eyes starting to close. "Hey Em, would it be okay if I went down to talk to Rick while you get caught up on sleep. I really need to plan with him."

"I can come…" Emma yawned again," … with you to talk to Rick."

Daryl laughed at her. "You'll fall asleep, you can barely stay awake now as it is. Stay here, sleep and I'll bring you up something to eat later…as long as Michonne ain't cookin'." Daryl placed a blanket over Emma, kissed her forehead and she was asleep before he closed the bedroom door.

Daryl stood with his back to the door for a moment, his head tilted back. This was his time to fall apart. No one was around to see his tears fall as the woman he treasured more than anything lay sleeping in the bed they shared. That was way too close. He almost lost her again.

He didn't like the person he had become after the first time. His anger at the world ruled him and everything he did. It almost cost him remaining with Rick and the others. He was lucky they let him stay with them. Very lucky.

If he had to have gone through losing Emma again, Daryl wasn't sure what he would have done. Most likely he would have gotten on his motorcycle and just left. Maybe that's how Carol felt, he wondered. She and Morgan had not returned yet. He hoped she would, as he wanted her to meet Emma. He was nothing without his green eyed girl.

He was wiping away the tears away with the back of his hand when Michonne came out of her and Rick's room. Daryl turned his head so she wouldn't see, but Michonne had quickly figured out he was hiding his emotions.

She simply wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close. Michonne could feel his anger, his fear and lastly his immense relief all come out of him as he cried in her arms. He had to get that out or explode and Michonne understood that.

Daryl pulled himself together fairly quickly and mumbled a "Sorry," to her as he pulled away.

She took her two hands and placed them on his scruffy tear-stained cheeks forcing him to look at her. "Don't apologize, there's no need. Families take care of each other. You've been through a lot in the last twenty-four hours, but she's back. You got her back and she's okay." Michonne dropped her hands and smiled at Daryl. "You know you're different now, right?"

"What you mean?"

"You're not as grouchy and brooding as you were." Michonne saw Daryl's eyes harden and she laughed at him. "You are actually happy now and that was never a word I'd associated with you. You just needed Emma and I think this new Daryl is damn great." Michonne kissed him on the cheek, which made Daryl turn red. "Cmon, let's go find Rick."

They found him sitting at the dining room table studying a map. "Tell your girl to stop hitting on me, man. I got enough trouble with the one I got." Daryl figured it was time for a little payback. Michonne had hit the nail on the head with him, but it still embarrassed him.

Rick shook his head and chuckled. He trusted Michonne completely, and knew his friend was just having fun.

She turned to Rick. "That's what I get for telling him he looks happy," she said rolling her eyes.

"Don't make that mistake again," Rick laughed.

"Believe me I won't," Michonne tried to say with a straight face, but failed. She joined Rick at the table laughing.

"You got time to go over this map with me?" Rick asked Daryl.

"Don't need to. Emma knows where this church is, or at least the basic area. She's sleeping now, but when she wakes up she'll make us a diagram of the building. Apparently, they use a couple of places for these meetings. Kinda rotating around. Afterwards they have the women clean up and Emma was one of them." Daryl leaned back into his chair as he watched Rick take this all in. His stomach rumbled reminding him he was hungry.

Daryl got up to rummage through the refrigerator and cabinets trying to find something to eat. Nothing looked good, so he just choose a can at random. After opening it and pouring it into a bowl, he set the timer on the microwave to heat it.

Rick sat up and caught Michonne's eye then Daryl's. "Are you telling me she can give us the details about this place? We don't have to do this blind?"

"That's what I'm saying," Daryl said in between mouthfuls of hash that he had poured ketchup over. Carl wasn't the only one that missed Emma's cooking.

Daryl sat back down at the table and looked at the map. "She told me it's about a mile outside of Hillsdale and five or so miles from Negan's basecamp on Route 27. I'm thinking it's about here," he said pointing at the map.

Rick and Michonne leaned into study the area. "When is this meeting?" Rick asked.

"Day after tomorrow. Don't know if we have time to check it out first or not, what do you think?"

Rick thought for a moment. They needed to do this the right way. It was the one chance to take Negan out. If they failed it would be an all-out war and Negan had the numbers and the man power, they didn't. "Let's get our people here and talk it out. And by that I don't mean the Alexandrian's, just us."

"What about Aaron?" Daryl suggested.

Rick hesitated before agreeing to bring Aaron in too. "But you tell him Daryl, not to say a word to anyone until we decide what we are doing. Okay?"

They quickly determined between the three of them who was going to go get who and they set off to notify their people. Rick felt the weight of Alexandria and these people crushing his shoulders as he out headed to find Glenn. He knew they could not survive a war with the Saviors. They would go down fighting, but they would surely go down. If this plan didn't work, they may need to think about heading out and leaving Alexandria behind. Starting over was better than dying.

* * *

 **A/N-** I wanted to end this story on a Thursday and to do that i need to post an extra chapter. Six Chapters left after this one. Big Excitement coming up!

Thanks for reading!


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

It was the aroma of food cooking that woke Emma up. Her stomach growled loudly in response as she realized she hadn't eaten in almost two days. She sat up in bed and looked around the room. It was empty, Daryl wasn't here. Emma swung her legs off the bed and noticed a box on the floor that she almost stepped on. She leaned over and picked it up. Emma's face lit up when she realized it was full of seed packets. Daryl had found her seeds!

The thought of fresh vegetables for their meals was exciting. She couldn't wait to show Maggie. Emma quickly washed her face and put on some clean clothes. At some point Daryl must have moved her boots and pants so she would be more comfortable while sleeping, because all she had on was her shirt and underwear.

The clock on the side table said it was going on six. It was dinner time. She had nearly slept the entire day, but she felt rested and good. In fact, better than she had in a long time. Emma was ready to get back to living again. As she pulled on her pants, she smiled to herself thinking of the many times Daryl had taken her clothes off. Had he remembered that when he was undressing her? She hoped he did, and then realized that was stupid. Of course he did, he was a guy.

As Emma was buttoning her jeans, she realized that the thought of Daryl and sex wasn't making her panic. While she always wanted to continue their sexual relationship, just thinking about the act of sex would make her breakout into a cold sweat. It wasn't happening. She was fine.

Emma sat back down on the bed and she started to smile. She was okay…really okay. Even though her kidnaping was a horrible ordeal to have gone through, Emma realized two things. She stayed strong throughout the whole ordeal. She never panicked or felt afraid. And the reason for that was Daryl.

She never doubted that he would find her and he did. He loved her so much that he would do anything for her and that included killing the men that took her. Before this crazy apocalypse happened, that would have frightened her into running away from him, but now it was a way of life. He was her life…her soulmate and he would never ever harm her. She realized that with every ounce of her being.

Even though she knew this before, it was different now. She had not just seen it, but experienced it. She was ready to share everything with him again….including her body. Emma was deliriously happy. They could get back to what they had before and that included a whole lot of sex. She couldn't wait for that intimacy again as Daryl could make her body feel things that she never thought possible.

The only bad thing was that she would have to wait, just a little while. She needed to join them downstairs and help them plan the elimination of Negan and the Saviors. Her information was critical.

Emma picked up the box of seeds and headed downstairs. As she entered the kitchen she could see Maggie quietly cooking and the rest of their group huddled around the big table talking.

Maggie saw her and smiled, "I'm so glad you are okay"' she told her. She stopped what she was doing to give Emma a hug, but the box was in the way. "What do you have there?"

"Daryl brought us a present from the last supply run, I think. Look at these." Emma put the box on the counter and showed Maggie all of the seeds inside. There must have been a hundred packets in there.

While Maggie was excitedly going through the box, Emma looked over at Daryl. He knew the second she came into the room and had been watching her ever since. He tilted his head silently asking her if she was okay, she nodded back that she was and blew him a kiss. The usually stoic Daryl, broke out into a big smile.

Rick saw Daryl smile and saw where he was looking. Emma had woken up and come downstairs. "Emma, good to see you up, we could use your help here."

"Let me grab something to eat and I'll be right over. I'm starving," she told him.

Daryl was watching Maggie help Emma make a plate, when he felt an elbow in his side. "What?" he growled at Michonne.

"That's better," she told him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked completely confused.

"You were smiling and that was scaring me. It's okay now, you are back to normal," she whispered trying not to laugh. Michonne loved teasing Daryl.

Before Daryl could get out a snarky retort, Emma was at his side. She held a plate with one hand and the other was now resting on his shoulder. All of the chairs at the table were occupied, so Daryl shifted back and indicated to Emma to sit on his lap.

Emma did just that and dove into her plate of food. She had no idea what she was eating, but it tasted good and hit the spot. In between chewing, she answered Rick's questions the best she could. Maggie took the plate away when she was done, as Emma had to draw the diagram of the church.

"It's quiet simple, really. Basic rectangular layout, with a small choir loft up here, like really small. They removed all the pews and add chairs and sofas so they could be comfortable. Negan has a big comfortable chair up where the alter used to be. Then to the right is a tiny vestibule with a staircase that leads down to an office and bathroom. That's it," Emma explained.

"What about windows and exits?" Daryl asked her.

Emma thought for a moment, "Pretty sure there are three long stain glass windows on each side. There's a big one above front door. The front has double doors leading in and there's a normal door leading out the back off the office." She leaned back into Daryl and he wrapped his arms around her small waist.

Rick looked around the table at everyone. He had known many of them for a long time and a handful from the beginning. He respected all of their opinions. "So…do we do it?" he asked. "Do we fight for Alexandria and our lives here or do we cave in to this tyrant? What do you guys want to do?"

No one said anything for a minute as the weight of this decision sunk in. Rick was starting to worry, when a voice spoke up, "We fight. We have too much here to lose." Everyone turned to Maggie who had spoken. "I'm not going back to living day by day on the road. I want to stay right here in Alexandria and to do that we need to get rid of The Saviors, so we fight."

Daryl already knew that was his vote, so he simply said, "We fight." Everyone at the table agreed from Glenn to Rosita to Gabriel. They didn't really have a choice, they had to fight. This time they had a good plan and Emma's inside information. They weren't going in blind.

"Good," said Rick. "We can do this. Tomorrow morning we assign everyone their responsibilities, tonight we eat and get a good night's sleep. The next two days will be exhausting to say the least."

Everyone at the table started to get up to get something to eat. "I'll get you a plate," Emma told Daryl.

"You don't have to," he told her.

"I know, but I want to. Be right back."

Daryl gave her butt a swat as she headed towards the kitchen. "You gonna let her come with us?" asked Rick.

"Don't want to, but I want her there."

"She's stronger than you think, you know?"

Daryl grinned at Rick. "I know, I'd just feel better if I knew her fighting capabilities better."

"Take her behind the houses and run her through some maneuvers. She couldn't have survived this long without being able to take care of herself," Rick suggested.

"Good idea." Emma placed a plate of food in front of Daryl and he dug in. Everyone else scattered around the room, leaving just Emma, Daryl, Rick and Michonne at the table. Conversation was minimal as everyone ate and digested the enormous task they had just agreed to undertake.

Emma noticed dirty dishes piling up in the kitchen so she got up and started washing everything. When everything was cleaned up, she noticed Daryl had moved to an easy chair in the living room. It was just Rick and Michonne, Glenn and Maggie and Daryl and Emma left.

She dried her hands and headed into join the group. They were all good people and Emma was happy that they easily allowed her into their tight knit family. Even though there was plenty of seating in the room, Emma chose Daryl's lap again as her place of preference.

As she snuggled into him to get comfortable, he immediately felt the affect her round bottom was having on him. If she was feeling him harden underneath her, Emma didn't acknowledge it. Daryl knew that this could send her into a panic attack, so he didn't move and did everything he could think of to stop himself from getting an erection. Everything he tried to think about from his brother to killing Dwight didn't help. Nothing was working plus every few minutes Emma was shifting her butt in his lap and before he knew it, his dick was completely rock hard.

" _What the fuck_?" he thought to himself. " _She has to feel it, there's no fuckin' way she can't, but she's acting normal. She's not getting nervous by it like she used to. What's going on_?"

Emma wiggled her butt some more, then lay her head on his shoulder. "Hey," she whispered in his ear.

Then he got it. She was doing this on purpose. She was purposefully getting him hard in front of his friends and she was enjoying every minute of it. This is something the old Emma would have done. Damn, did this mean that she was okay? Daryl had no idea what to think.

"You know what you're doing, right?" he said softly back to her.

"You mean this?" she purred. Emma adjusted her position once again on Daryl and this time she placed her hand on his bulging crotch. Leaning back against him, her body hid what she was doing to everyone in the room, except Daryl.

He pulled her tightly to him. "We are going to get up off this chair and you will use your body to hide this fuckin' hard on you gave me, you witch. Upstairs you'll get what's comin' to ya," he told her in a low growl.

"Promises, promises!" she snickered back.

Emma got up off Daryl and he popped up right behind her. They said their goodnights and Emma did her damnedest not to laugh. She made it as far as the kitchen before she burst out laughing and Daryl made a beeline for the stairs.

Rick shouted over to her, "He'll get you back for that."

Emma looked at him in surprise. She didn't think that anyone knew what she had been up to. "I certainly hope so," she replied with a wink and followed Daryl up the stairs. Their bedroom door was ajar, so Emma entered and closed it softly behind her.

Daryl was standing by the bed looking amused. His erection was clearly visible in his pants. "Before we start sumthin' that I don't want to have to finish myself, you gonna tell me what's going on?"

Emma reached behind her and locked the door. Her eyes never left his as she walked up to him. Her hands reached for the hem of her shirt and she pulled it over her head, tossing it aside. Daryl stared at her breasts cupped in her white lacy bra. He had to remember to breathe.

"Are you telling me what I think you are telling me?" he asked her. He couldn't take him eyes off her breasts. Sure he had seen them, touched them, tasted them a hundred times, but this was now. This was years later and times had changed.

"I want you Daryl. I'm all in. I want back what we had."

He was almost powerless to resist her as she unbuttoned his shirt and slipped it off his broad shoulders. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but wait just a second." He took a step back from her and almost landed on his ass on the bed. He forgot how close it was to him.

"I gotta get my head wrapped around this. Just a few days ago, you had a panic attack when it came to having sex. What changed?" Daryl wanted to make love to her more than anything in the world, but he wanted to make sure this was the right decision for both of them. It was hard to concentrate on anything but her magnificent breasts, but he was trying.

"I'm not sure," she admitted. "All I know is that when I woke up this afternoon, I was no longer afraid to be with you. I think my brain finally realized that while you are a man, you absolutely would never hurt me. With us sex is about love, not violence. I need to feel that love again from you. I've missed it so much."

"Me too," he told her his words coming out in a soft whisper. Daryl opened his arms and Emma came immediately into them. Her soft breasts were pressed up against his hard chest.

She raised her head and looked into his blue eyes. "I love you," she told him.

"I love you too," he whispered into her hair. He had waited forever to get this moment back with her.

"Show me."

Daryl cupped her chin and raised her so she was looking directly sat him. "I plan on showing you over and over again tonight."

Emma's giggle, turned into a strong sexy stare as she watched him drop his pants. The hunger in his eyes matched hers. She reached out her hand to take his. "What are we waiting for then?" she asked softly.

"Absolutely fuckin' nuthin'" he answered, his voice deeper than normal. Daryl started with a deep kiss…a soul scorching kiss that started getting their lives back onto the right track.

* * *

A/N- Had to delete the chapter and reload it. Sorry about that everyone. Thank you Lady Dixon.


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

Daryl leaned down until his forehead touched Emma's. His ragged breath flitted over her face, warming her cheeks. With the pad of his thumb he traced the lines of her full lips. He could spends days kissing those lips and never tire.

His mouth found hers again, but his hands went behind her. Deftly he unhooked her bra, smiling to himself that he hadn't lost the touch. He broke the kiss as the need to see her was overwhelming.

Daryl lifted his hand to her right shoulder pushing the strap off. Then he did the same for the left. Emma then pulled it off her and her breasts were finally free for him to admire. He cupped one then the other, holding them both in his hands. God, how he had missed this, missed her.

Daryl closed his eyes as he took her nipples between his fingers and played with them. He rolled, pinched and pulled until he heard soft moans coming from Emma. He knew exactly what she liked, so he played a little harder and firmer, and Emma's moans grew louder. His dick was standing up straight, his desire for her clearly evident.

He lowered his mouth to take one pink nipple between his teeth, while his hand massaged the other. He suckled on one breast, then the other knowing this was going to stretch the limits of his self-control. When he finally couldn't take it anymore, he stopped and pulled away. They were both out of breath.

Emma unbuttoned her jeans and slid them down her shapely legs. Her panties quickly followed. Emma was thinner than she had been back in Riverside when they lived in her little trailer, but that did not detract from how he reacted to her body. He loved it then and he still loved it now. She was his perfect woman in every way.

Daryl watched her walk away from him and lay down on the bed. He joined her immediately. The need to touch her, kiss her and taste every inch of her was overwhelming. He crushed his mouth to hers taking possession of it harder than he intended. When he went to pull back, be gentler with her, Emma would not let him. Her need was as great as his.

She moaned deeply as his mouth traveled down to her left breast. He tongued one pebbled peak, circling, flicking, lapping and sucking before paying equal attention to the other. Emma was on fire as Daryl's mouth controlled her body. She had forgotten how desperate he could make her feel, but underneath that desire there still was a small amount of anxiety that was trying to creep to the surface.

" _No_!" she told herself. " _This is not going to happen again_."

Daryl felt a slight tension in her begin and knew he had to make this about her. "Please let me please you, Em. All I can do is think about tasting you."

Emma shivered at his words. He wanted to please her first, put her first and that started to drive the panic that was lingering under the surface away. This was Daryl, her Daryl and he would never hurt her, he loved her.

Emma was a deeply sensuous woman who had been hiding behind her fear for too long. She realized it was finally gone this time. All she wanted now was Daryl. She was all in.

Daryl's mouth left a fiery trail of kisses down her body as he moved lower and lower. Emma's eyes were closed in anticipation as she felt a nip on her inner thigh. She clutched the bedsheets with both hands as he slid a finger between her wet folds. A small cry escaped her lips when his tongue finally touched her swollen bud. Daryl slipped his other hand beneath her butt and squeezed, drawing another moan from her. She released the sheets and cupped her breasts as their eyes met.

Emma's openness sex always turned him on more than she could ever imagine. She didn't have the look of a sex kitten, but she was. She was the one that always wanted to take his old truck with the bench front seat whenever they went out. They rarely took her car. More times than not, her hand or mouth had control of his dick when they came home or she would let him know that she didn't have any panties on getting Daryl so worked up, he'd find a place to pull over so he could fuck her right then and there and again when they got home.

In the year they lived together their sex life never waned, it only intensified. Daryl had never known it could be this good and it was about to start all over again.

Daryl slid another finger into her tight opening while using his tongue to excite her clit. Emma arched into him with a soft purr. He used both his mouth and fingers on her until her moans became louder. Then he removed his fingers and used that hand to cup her other butt cheek drawing her closer to him. He used his tongue to tease before covering her with his mouth.

Emma cried out her hips arching as she came, her fingers tunneling into his hair. Daryl didn't ease up, his lips and tongue working to win every last groan from her until she went limp with a lusty sigh. He smiled with satisfaction as he rose up to face her.

"God, I so missed that. I forgot how good you are doing…that," she sighed.

Daryl simply smiled at her as he positioned himself above her. He had waited weeks and before that years to be inside her again. He couldn't wait any longer. The tip of his hard shaft brushed against her swollen lips.

He leaned down gave her one long kiss, wanting to taste that mouth before he forgot all about it. Once he entered her, it would consume him. It had been too long for him and he knew this would be fast and hard. He put his hands to her butt, gripped and lifted her just the tiniest amount, and then he plunged. He buried himself inside of her. And he almost died with the sensations that ripped through him. Then he began to move and it was the best damn feeling he'd ever experienced in his life. His body pumped above Emma's, sliding deep, in and out, leaving them both breathless with each move.

It didn't take long for their passion to build lighting both of their bodies on fire. Even after all this time their bodies were still finely attuned to the others and they knew when each other was ready. Together they rode the waves of their combined orgasms until they lay limp in each other's arms. Their sweat drenched bodies stuck together as neither wanted the other to move. This closeness, this oneness they shared was unique. Their bond to each other was strong and eternal. There would be no one else that could ever take their places. This was what being a soulmate was all about.

Daryl finally moved to the side pulling Emma into his arms. He nuzzled her hair before finally saying just one word, "Wow."

"Yeah…wow," Emma echoed. Her breath coming in ragged gasps. "We need to do that again…and soon."

Daryl laughed. "Fuck yeah, but let me recover first. I ain't as young as I used to be."

Emma kissed him and tasted herself on his lips, before snuggling into his embrace. She was happy…deliriously happy. "Thanks for being patient with me," she told him.

"Em, of course. I just wish you had told me sooner, I would've understood better what was going on. Don't keep shit from me. Okay?" he replied. He knew it had to have been hard for her to tell him about the rape...make that rapes. After being separated all this time, it was hard to go back to the way it was before. They were on the right path now…finally.

They talked about anything that came to mind as they lay together on the bed, naked and still feeling the afterglow from making love. "This showdown with Negan, are you guys really sure that you can take him and men on. There's an awful lot of them." This had been on her mind since dinner. She just got him back and there was no way she wanted to lose him already.

"Rick and me we gotta plan. He's still workin' out the details, but it will work. We just need to have Negan and all of his top guys in one place. We take them out, we'll cut the head off the snake and the rest will fall apart," he told her.

Anything like this carried a risk and this was a big one, but if they could pull it off they wouldn't have to worry about the Saviors anymore. They didn't have time to get to the Hilltop and get manpower from them. They had to do this on their own.

"If you think it can be done, I trust you. I want Alexandria to win. This is our home," Emma said rolling onto her back and sitting up on her elbows. "It's a helluva nicer than that old trailer we had."

Daryl barely heard her as all he saw were her breasts just waiting there for him. She was always so casual about being naked around him, he'd have to get used to that again or he'd have a permanent erection. He could feel his coming back to life and quickly.

"Daryl, you're not listening to me," Emma scolded him.

"How can I, with these right here…just right here, practically in my face. Damn, Em," he sighed.

She took his hand and placed it on her breast. "There. Babe, what's stopping you?"

"No fuckin' idea," he laughed. He played with her breasts for a little bit and every second he did, he got harder and harder.

Emma turned towards him and pushed her hips against his. She loved that her body could make him hard so quickly, just like he could turn her on with just a look. Daryl closed his eyes as he felt her grab a hold of his dick and start to stroke him. His lips were about to touch her when she said, "Round two?"

"Fuck yeah," he groaned before he crushed his mouth to hers. It was time for round two and maybe even a three.


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

It was a good thing that Daryl was used to surviving on very little sleep, as he had a big day ahead of him and the few hours of sleep he managed to get would have to do. Hopefully he could catch a quick nap during the day. Twenty minutes was all he needed to reenergize.

The sun had come up just a little while ago, so the room was bathed in a soft sunlight. Emma was still sound asleep with her head on his chest, the sound of her gentle breathing was music to his ears. He rubbed her back with his hand as he remembered last night.

The crazy chemistry they had that would turn into a full blown explosion when they were together, hadn't dulled with the years they spent apart, if anything it intensified and last night was proof of that. It could have been that he hadn't had sex since the day he left Emma to do that overnight job with Merle or it could be that she turned him on like no woman he had ever met, but each time their bodies joined last night it seemed their climaxes were stronger and stronger if that was all possible.

Just thinking about her lying naked in his arms right now got him hard again. Maybe, if he woke her up, they'd have time to have sex again before he needed to meet up with Rick. The more he thought about himself inside of her again the harder he got until he didn't have a choice anymore. He was waking Emma up.

Just as Daryl was about to coax her awake by playing with her breast, he had a sobering thought and with that he completely lost his erection. They hadn't used any protection last night. Not the first, second or third time he came inside of her. Fuck.

They had never used condoms before because Emma had been in the pill. They didn't need to, but there was no way she was still on the pill now.

Daryl rested the back of his hand on his forehead as dozens of questions flew through his head. What if she got pregnant? What would they do? What did he know about being a father? How could he even be a good one, when what he had experienced growing up was shit? What if she died like Lori or if she lost the baby like Maggie? They had sorta talked about kids, but this was reality slamming right into him

"Fuck!" he growled.

Emma had always loved the raspyness of Daryl's voice. The cigarettes he smoked didn't help, but he could send tingles throughout her body by just saying a few words. He did with just that one.

"I'm game," she looking up at him with sleepy eyes.

"What?" Daryl asked her. He was confused.

Emma giggled, "You said _Fuck_ so I said I'm game." Her hand moved to rest on his thigh as her fingers gently caressed his leg.

"That was more of an 'Oh fuck', then a 'Let's fuck'," he told her kissing the top of her head. "We didn't use a condom last night."

Emma didn't say anything as the implications of what Daryl said hit her. She hadn't given any thought at all about using protection. God, she was so used to them never using anything, because she was on the pill, that she never gave a single thought last night...or just now. This was definitely an 'Oh Fuck' moment.

"How did we not even think about that?" she asked him "What if…?"

"Yeah what if."

Emma didn't say anything for a little while. The world now was a whole lot of different than when they lived together. She and Daryl had never talked seriously about having kids, they were too busy having fun with just themselves. She didn't even know if he had ever wanted kids. She had, but times were different now.

"Don't get me wrong, Daryl. I love you more than anything and having a baby with you would have been incredible, but now? I don't know if I want a baby …now…in the middle if this craziness," she told him. Emma had always dreamed about having babies. She wanted to be able to show them the love that she never had a child. But now? Could she bring a child into the world now?

Daryl took the hand Emma had on his chest and threaded his fingers through hers. "I understand, Em. I've already seen what Rick has gone through with Judith. He lost his wife during childbirth and the life we live ain't easy with a baby. It would kill me to lose you or our baby." He knew he wouldn't survive losing her again.

"We have to be careful, Daryl. What do Rick and Michonne do?" she asked.

Daryl shook his head, "I have no fuckin' idea. Why would I ever ask that?"

Emma simply looked at him and raised her eyebrows.

"Alright, alright," he said. "Now I have a reason to ask him, but what do I say, 'Yo Rick, when you are fuckin' Michonne, are you coverin' it up? Got any extras?' "

Emma burst out laughing. He certainly had a way with words. It may be an uncomfortable subject to bring up, but he had to.

"First of all, don't be so…blunt. When you guys are out doing supply runs, no one ever grabbed the condoms? The world may have gone to hell, but that sure hasn't stopped people from having sex, right?" she said to Daryl.

"I wasn't looking to fuck anyone, so it was nuthin' I paid attention to," he told her.

Emma hesitated before she asked him what had been in her mind. "I know you thought I was probably dead, so it's okay if you did, but was there anyone while we were apart?"

She really did not want to hear the answer to that question, but then on the other hand she did. There was no reason to think that in the years they had been apart he had been a monk. She needed to know, but she prayed the answer was no. But how could it be?

Daryl hugged her close and kissed her forehead, before tilting her chin up so he could look directly into those big green eyes she had. "Em, there was absolutely no one. No relationships, no quickies in the backseat of a car or an abandoned house. How could I? I still loved you."

Emma gave him a huge smile even though the tears were flowing down her cheeks.

" _Great_ ," Daryl thought. " _Was she okay_?" Sure she was smiling, but she was crying too. He never understood this with women. How can they cry when they are happy? She was happy, right?

"Same with me, except for those men, I never wanted to be with anyone but you." How did she get so lucky with this man? "So getting back to the topic at hand… condoms. We need them. Does the supply room have a toiletry area, you know for soap, shampoo, girl stuff? It would make sense to put them there, unless the guys are hiding them. "

"I guess," he replied.

Emma rolled he eyes at him. "Where do you get soap, toothpaste that stuff from?"

"Would ask Carol for it and she took care of it."

Emma could see at the mention of Carol's name Daryl got quiet. There was a heaviness to the air now.

"Do you miss her?" Emma asked.

"Yeah, she's a good friend. She kinda stuck with me after she lost her asshole husband and her daughter Sophia. Man, I searched for that kid for days and days. I was also pretty much a dick to her the entire time, but she never gave up trying to be my friend." Daryl ran his hand across her cheek. "I hope Morgan can find her and bring her home."

"Be it right or wrong it was her decision to make wasn't it? But I do hope to be able to meet her one day. Maybe this Morgan will get her to come back."

"Yeah, it was her decision, but it was the wrong one. Families stick together," he told her with a kiss. "I'd like you to meet her too."

"What are the plans for today?" Emma asked.

Daryl kept kissing Emma as he replied, "Gotta meet with Rick. Then I wanna check you out with how you do with knives and guns. You need to be ….armed …when we take the church." The last thing Daryl wanted to do right then was think about what he needed to do that day, all he wanted to do… well was do Emma…again.

Emma kept talking as his kisses left her mouth and traveled all over. "So I'm definitely going with you?"

"Yeah…I want you there and…Rick agreed." Daryl knew a sure fire way to shut her up. His mouth ended up on her left breast he heard her suck in her breath as he took her nipple between his teeth. "Right now…this is all I want," he said before both his hand and his mouth took over her breast.

Just as Emma moaned, there was a knock at the door. "Daryl? You up?"

Emma started to giggle, as she was able to see how 'up' he was.

"Fuck," he said under his breath. "Yeah, what is it Rick?"

"We got a lot of shit to do today. I need you," Rick told him through the door.

"Now?"

"Yep. I want to go over the final plan and we need to get the good weapons out, so we can leave on time."

Daryl dropped his head and sighed. "I'll be down."

"Thanks bro," Rick said before he headed downstairs.

Daryl kissed Emma between her breasts. "Just when things were starting to get good," he said.

"Well a few more minutes won't matter, will they?" Emma suggested with a devious smile.

He liked that smile. "What you got in mind?"

Emma pushed Daryl onto his back and it was now her turn to kiss him anywhere and everywhere. She started with her favorite little 'X' tattoo and worked her way down his lean body. Daryl knew exactly where she was headed and he moaned deeply at the thought of it. He loved it when she went down on him and he felt her getting closer and closer to his now throbbing erection.

He couldn't wait for her mouth to take him in and …and…holy fuck her sweet mouth was nothing short of heaven as she teased, stroked and took him all the way in. It was way more than a few minutes before he was able to head downstairs with a satisfied smile on his face.

Rick looked up from his planning and saw Daryl walk into the room. He burst out laughing. "Man, I have never seen that look on your face before."

"What are you talking about?" Daryl asked him while trying not to smile.

"You just got laid."

"Close," Daryl laughed not feeling embarrassed. "Hey, I need condoms, we got any around here?"

"I thought every guy knew where we kept them," Rick teased. "In the supply pantry there's a cabinet with the toothpaste, shampoo that type of stuff. They are there in a plastic box in there. You know, you can always ask Olivia for help."

"Hell no." The last person he would ever ask is the mild Olivia for help finding the condoms.

"So I gather things are back on track with you and Emma?" Rick asked Daryl as he sat down at the table.

"Yep. She had a lot shit to work through, but we're good now."

Rick nodded his head happy for his friend. "No one should ever have to go through anything like that. She caught a tough break."

Thinking about what his Emma had gone through instantly took the smile off of Daryl's face. "We got weapons to retrieve today?"

"Yeah and I finalized the plan. This is what's gonna happen." Rick spent the next hour going over the attack plan with Daryl. Once they were both satisfied with it, they inventoried the weapons they wanted to bring and got the ones they needed out of hiding. The Saviors were going out with very big bang if Rick and Daryl had anything to say about it. They owed that to Abraham.


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37**

The caravan of four mismatched cars held a total of twenty people. Each car was also loaded down with automatic weapons, hand guns, extra ammunition and supply packs for each person. If anyone got separated from the group, they would have the essentials in with to survive for a couple days.

It was now the middle of the night as the cars headed towards their destination. They covered the miles in a slow steady pace with very little walkers crossing their path. They were using the darkness to cover up their arrival, so they could get into position hopefully unnoticed.

This attack had to be a complete surprise or it simply would not work. They had no other option…this had to succeed.

With less than two dozen people from Alexandria trying to take out the top men from the Saviors was extremely risky operation. This was all or nothing. As long as they were not discovered, this would go down in their favor, so that's why they were doing this during the darkest time of the night.

Emma sat next to Daryl in the car that was being driven by Glenn. Maggie was next to him in the front seat and Aaron was on Emma's other side. They were the lead car with the other three behind them. Each car had a location that they were to pull over at and hide the car as best as they could. The cars were going to be spread out along the country road and one by one they were to pull over as they found secluded spots in their assigned area.

Finally Glenn steered the car to the side of the road over and tucked it into the trees. They all got out keeping an eye on out for people or walkers. They were all highly alert to their surroundings. It was lucky for them that while it was a cloudless night, the moon was just a tiny little sliver. The night was the perfect amount of darkness to see where they were going without using a flashlight.

The larger weapons were unloaded from the trunk and everyone got ready for the long trek to the church. Extra ammunition was stuffed into pockets and packs went over their shoulders. Emma was the only one not carrying an automatic weapon. Daryl had given her two hands guns instead. There was no time to train her how to use one, plus wasting bullets training her at this point would not have been beneficial the group. Emma was more familiar with the handguns, so that's what Daryl deemed to be the best choice for her.

Everyone had their assigned positions to locate. Six people would be spread out behind the church keeping an eye on the back door. The rest would be scattered around the front where the saviors would be coming and going. Since the meeting was not until daylight, Rick hoped that the guards would not be already in position.

Emma stayed with Daryl. He had already told her not to leave his side no matter what. She watched him put a strap over his head and onto his shoulder that held a large weapon that she had never seen before. This was vastly different from the usual crossbow he wore, in fact he did not even bring the crossbow with him which she thought was usual.

"Stay close and watch for my hand signals," he whispered to her. "Keep a gun in hand, finger off the trigger and pointed down. Don't fuckin' shoot me."

Of course she knew that and when he didn't respond to the eye roll, she shook her head yes. She wasn't that much of a novice.

A few of the others had caught up to them by now, so Daryl started the group heading out, taking the point position that he was used to. He held his AR-15 rifle up and ready.

As they trudged through the underbrush and dense forest, Emma wondered why Daryl had wanted her to come along. She certainly was not as good as they were with guns and fighting, so being there did make her extremely nervous. She knew her skills were not up to par with what this attack needed. However, on the other hand she was glad not to be back at Alexandria waiting and wondering what had happened.

Daryl kept the group moving as quickly and quietly as possible. He always had a good sense of direction, so even though he only had a general idea where the church was, he knew he was headed in the right direction. That and his tracking skills were why Rick had him lead so often.

Every few minutes he would check that Emma was still right behind him along with the rest of the group. He was leading seven people that included Emma, Aaron, Rosita and several more of the original Alexandrians.

Rick was ten minutes behind him with Michonne, Gabriel, Sasha and three more Alexandrians. Glen had his people heading towards the back of the church. He was leading Maggie, Eric, Eugene, Tara and Heath.

Within an hour they were all in position and ready to wait out the rest of the night. Emma had told Rick that she thought Negan usually wanted everyone at the assigned meeting location for lunch time. This way they didn't need to travel at night as The Saviors were quite spread out. She remembered watching food leave the main camp to get to the leaders for lunch. Sometimes they even stayed for dinner, but they always had lunch.

Now it was simply a waiting game.

* * *

Negan always looked forward to his meetings with his lieutenants. He sat in the backseat of the SUV that was headed to today's location and he was smiling to himself. He loved being able to continually show the power he held over everyone… over his people and over the communities around them. He liked having his people afraid of him. The cost of disobeying him was severe and how severe was up to him. They could end up looking like Dwight with his half burned face or they could lose a limb or lose their life. He was never to be disobeyed.

He knew his men's loyalty went as far as his power over them. There was not one of them that he completely trusted. They would overthrow him in a second if they thought they could get away with it, that's why he was continuously proving his strength and ruthlessness, but also his fairness to them. Punishments were severe, but always warranted. He was king of the Saviors and planned on staying that way for a long, long time.

The Alexandrians were the most recent community brought under his brutal thumb. He had to give it to them as they had fucking balls. No one took on his men and lived, and they were able to take them out not once, but twice showed their strength. Their fault, make that Rick's fault, was they underestimated him.

" _Fucking right, they underestimated me_ ," he thought to himself. " _And they paid the price with Lucille_."

Negan learned early on that he needed to scare the shit out of people in order to get them to co-operate. He'd make a statement...a fucking huge statement and that usually kept everyone in line. If not, they would pay the price again and this time it would be worse. He fucking loved it when it was worse.

He watched the countryside fly by the car and thought about the Alexandrians again. He knew they were different than any of the other groups he had working for them. They showed they had guts and he appreciated that, but he knew they had been knocked down temporarily. As much as they showed fear and defeat at the ceremony, he had a feeling they were not going to lay down and take it like The Hilltop and the others did. He was expecting a comeback from them and was looking forward to it. He welcomed it in fact.

The car turned down the dirt road that led to the church they were using for the meeting. He noticed guards stationed around the perimeter keeping a lookout for trouble from walkers, humans or both. They were never really was needed, except for an occasional walker. It was simply a precaution as no one ever bothered them. No one dared.

Negan exited the car and headed through the wide open doors to meet his men. It was time for an accounting from his men to see who was co-operating and who was shorting them their half share. He had put Dwight in charge of the Alexandrians and he wanted to know how their first delivery went. As he made his way to his elevated chair up on what would have been the alter, he noticed the ugly scarred face of Dwight was missing. Where was that motherfucker? He knew better than to be late.

* * *

Rick and Daryl watched the activity going on at the church through the scopes of their weapons. They saw the guards arrive with the women that brought the food, and then the women left. The men never ventured beyond the grounds of the church, which was good for the group hiding in the woods, but sloppy surveillance. It meant there was less of a chance of them being discovered.

A dozen other men arrived individually or in small groups and headed inside. They had to be Negan's lieutenants and they could be seen wandering around in the church's main room. With the big front double doors left open for air flow, it gave Daryl and Rick a clear view of what was going on inside. It could not have been more perfect.

Emma sat quietly next to Daryl. They had barely talked at all during the last eight hours they had been hiding in the woods. She was tired and bored, but knew that Negan would be arriving shortly and that would change everything or at least that was what she expected. Daryl had never gone over the details of this attack with her. All she knew was to stay near him, other than that she was clueless and that bothered her. She should have asked him about the plan, but it was too late now. She wouldn't let that happen again.

While he kept in eye on the Saviors, she kept an eye out for walkers. They were lucky that they had yet to encounter more than two or three that were easily taken care of. The sun was high in the sky and the temperature of the day had risen greatly. The ground gave off a musty smell that tickled Emma's nose.

Daryl watched as the guards did a lazy ass job of patrolling. They were so used to not having any trouble he guessed that they spent more time talking than actually watching for signs of trouble. He smiled to himself as this was the best situation they could have asked for. He had a good feeling that this was going to be a big success, as they were betting everything they had on it. If it failed, they would have to leave Alexandria and in a hurry too, as retribution by the Saviors would be hard and swift.

Rick had left it up to him when to start the attack. He was just waiting for Negan to arrive, which was hopefully soon. Daryl looked over at Emma and knew he should have left her back home. Home? When had he started to think of Alexandria as home? He realized then that he didn't have that claustrophobic feeling that it had given him for so long. He was comfortable there now. Emma being there made a big difference. He always felt closer to her than anyone else in his life, including his brother. Where she was… home was.

That's why he made her come, even though Rick strongly suggested he leave her back with Carl and Judith. He didn't want to be separated from her. She was what made his life worth living again. It was a selfish and probably a really stupid move, but she was here sitting in the brush with the rest of them. If the shit hit the fan he would die protecting her, but he really wasn't expecting that to happen. He had a good feeling about this.

Daryl reached out a hand towards Emma and indicated to her to come closer to him. "This should be going down soon. After Negan arrives and gets comfortable, I'm moving in closer to get a better shot. You need to stay here and off a bit to the side," he whispered to her. "If we get separated, wait here if you can or try to head to the car. We may need to get closer in to get the guards, but you stay here. Stay alert for walkers or strays."

He gave her a quick kiss. "When this goes down it will be fast and loud."

"What are you going to do?" Emma asked softly.

The corner of Daryl's mouth lifted. "Just wait and see."

Again he wasn't telling her anything and that didn't make her happy. "Daryl, I want to know what's going to happen,' she told him more forcefully.

"Em…" he started to say when a big SUV drove in causing dust to swirl in the air. His attention immediately went back to the action at the church. Daryl watched Negan exit the car and strut into the building. It was almost time.

Emma watched as best as she could through the trees and foliage they were hiding behind. She would constantly turn back around to check for walkers. The last thing she wanted was one to surprise her or Daryl.

Negan walked through the room greeting his men before heading to his big chair on the raised dais. He sat down with his long legs stretched out in front of him. This was his favorite location to have his meetings. It was out in the country and the set up made him feel like he was the King of them all…which in fact he was.

Daryl watched the goings on inside the church until he was sure they settled down to talk. He looked over at Rick and nodded that he was going to move in. The tension in the air rose as everyone knew Daryl was going in for the shot.

Emma's anxiety skyrocketed as she realized how vulnerable he was going to be. She said a quick prayer to the God she wasn't sure she believed in anymore and watched the love of her life put himself in severe jeopardy.

Daryl watched every step he took to make sure he made as little noise as possible. He was on the edge of the trees, hidden behind some mountain laurel bushes. He put the gun in his hand down on the ground and took the rocket launcher off his back. He was using one of the last two RPG's, rocket propelled grenade, to take the Saviors out. It worked the first time, so why not now when the stakes were even higher.

He didn't waste any time aiming it inside the church and fired. The building exploded into a bright hot fireball tossing flaming pieces of wood and debris high into the air. Multiple gunshots started to fire as they took out any survivors and guards. It was a controlled chaos that had Rick smiling from ear to ear.

"Take that you fuckers," Rick shouted as his gun took out one man after another. The Alexandrian's had their revenge.

* * *

 **A/N - Big impact chapter...what did you think? It's certainly a very plausible way to take out Negan. They still do have two RPG's left.**

 **Two chapters to go then _Suddenly...GONE_ is finished. Sad, I now, but then it's going to be time for _Taking a Chance._ That will start a week from today. It will be a whole new adventure with Daryl in a completely non-TWD setting. I'm excited for it. Follow me as an author to always know when a new story is posted.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Walker Witch**


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38**

Everything was on fire at the church including some of the trees. The building was reduced to a fiery pile of rubble and burnt body parts. There was absolutely no way anyone could have lived through the explosion.

Emma crouched down in awe of what had just happened. She had wondered what that thing was that Daryl carried, but she never expected it to do what it did. She watched the rest of the group take out any of the surviving guards one by one, until the only thing left alive was the burning fire.

Rick walked over to Daryl and put a hand on his shoulder. "We did it, man. Negan is gone. The Saviors are blow to fucking bits!"

Daryl looked at the RPG launcher in his hand. "I love this fuckin' thing," he laughed. "Too bad we only have one RPG left."

"We'll make that one count too when we need it. Let's go in and make sure that there's nothing left alive," Rick said.

"Will do, let me get Emma," Daryl told him.

Daryl walked back to Emma and when she saw him she threw herself into his arms. She kissed him and pulled back with a huge smile on her face. "That was unbelievable!" she exclaimed. "What was that?"

"It was an RPG."

"A what?" she asked.

"It's a military weapon…a rocket propelled grenade. I took out his other men with one before you came back. Abraham found them, so it was fitting that we blew Negan to bits with it." Daryl dropped a soft kiss on her lips before grabbing her hand. "C'mon we going in to see if anything is left and take care of them."

"You are an amazing man Daryl Dixon," Emma told him.

Daryl smiled at her, but didn't say anything back to her. He never took praise well, as he never had received any of it during most of his life. It always made him slightly uncomfortable. He turned towards the opening in the trees where the church had been and pulled Emma behind him.

Glenn and his crew came around the building to meet up with everyone. They hadn't lost a single person, while every one of the Saviors was dead. They had taken out all guards and no one escaped from the explosion. All of the leaders of the Saviors were gone.

After a careful examination of the area, the group all came together in the yard and watched the low burning fire finish consuming what had been the old church. It was a bit overwhelming, but satisfying at the same time.

"We did it," Rick finally said to everyone. "We did it at no cost to us and took all of those assholes out." Rick raised his gun in the air, "To Abraham!"

Everyone shouted together, "To Abraham!" It was a solemn moment as they remembered their unique friend. Abraham was a one of a kind guy. Several of the girls brushed away tears.

Rick had them check out any of the undamaged vehicles to see if they were worthy enough to bring back and they found that three were in good shape with a decent amount of gas in them, so the caravan of four cars was now up to seven.

Daryl drove one of the new vehicles back with Emma beside him in the front seat. It was a black Honda Pilot that was in better than normal condition. The rest of the group split up between the other six cars and everyone headed back to Alexandria.

"Do you think this is it for us and the Saviors? It's over?" Emma asked him as they drove down the deserted road behind Rick's car.

"Hope so, but only time will tell. They lost their leaders so Rick hopes they just fall apart. We'll have to keep the watch posts on a high alert in case they try anything," he told her. Daryl reached over and took her hand in his. They hadn't driven alone like this since before they got separated.

"Do you think they will know it was us?"

"Maybe …maybe not. We didn't leave any survivors and nothing there will lead them to us, but we'll just have to see, but we can handle it if they try anything." Daryl had confidence in their group. They had screwed up once, but they were quick learners, he and Rick would never do that again. Their learned their lesson the real hard way.

Emma looked over at Daryl and smiled at him. He felt her looking at him and glanced over. "What?"

"I am so lucky and I can't believe I'm saying this but I owe it to Merle."

"What are you talking a about, Em?" What the hell could she owe Merle? He did nothing but be a pain in the ass when they were together.

"If Merle hadn't conned his way into being the new maintenance guy, you would not have moved next door and we would never have met. Merle brought us together, unintentionally, but ultimately he did. Right?" Emma explained. Merle was the creepiest guy she had ever met and that he and Daryl were brothers never made sense, but without Merle, they would have never met and fell in love.

Daryl thought about it for a second. "You're right now that I think about it," he agreed. "I can't think of one think he did right in his life, 'cept this." Daryl looked up into the blue sky through the dirty windshield of the car, "Thanks bro, she's the best thing that ever happened to me."

Emma leaned her head on his shoulder for a little bit and they drove in silence. The bucket seats didn't allow her to hold that position for too long. Emma watched a small group of walkers try to reach out to them from the side of the road as they drove by. Out of her side view mirror she saw a couple bounce of the side if the car behind them and tumble into a small gully.

"Can I ask you something?" she said to Daryl.

"Anything."

"Why did you bring me today?" Emma asked. It had been on her mind since he told her she was coming with them. She wasn't a strong fighter, so I didn't make any sense on why Daryl made her come along.

Daryl kept looking at the road as he started to talk. He wasn't good at talking about shit like this. "I'm a selfish sumbitch. I wanted you with me."

"Why? I certainly can't fight or shoot like everyone else."

"Because I wanted you were I could see you. It was stupid of me to bring you along, but I would do it again." Daryl hesitated for a bit and Emma could see he was trying to find a way to tell her. "You see Em, the day this fuckin' world fell apart and I couldn't find you was the worst day of my sorry life and every day after that got worse and worse. Ask Rick, I was the biggest dick when he met me. You weren't home and I couldn't find you anywhere. Having you so suddenly gone from my life was like having my heart ripped out of my chest. You were the only person in my whole life who ever cared about me and who I ever cared about and loved. Then you were gone. I just can't handle that happening again."

Daryl finally looked over at Emma to see what her reaction was. She had tears streaming down her face that had a huge smile on it. "I will love you Daryl Dixon until the end of time," she told him. This one of a kind man was hers and Emma had no intention of ever being separated from him again. She completely understood what he was telling her. She felt the exact same way.

He took her hand and brought it up to his mouth and kissed the back of it. "I love you too, Emma Raines."

The rest of the drive back home was done in a happy silence. Neither felt the need to talk as just being together was enough. Their actions that day pretty much guaranteed their life in Alexandria would continue. Daryl knew only time would tell if they experienced any retribution from the remaining Saviors.

Meanwhile, Daryl was making plans in his head for them. It was time for him and Emma to start living the life they should have had years ago. If the apocalypse hadn't happened Daryl knew they would be married for a couple years by now and maybe even have a kid or two. Him married? What a thought! He never imagined that would happen or that he would even want to get married until he met Emma. She had changed him and his way of thinking in so many different ways and all for the better. Emma showed him what he had been missing his entire life.

As screwed up as this world was right now, he wanted some normalcy for them. He laughed to himself as this world wasn't anything but normal, but that's what he wanted…finally. He lived his life differently than any of his friends as he was always the loner, the one that always stayed slightly apart from everyone. That was another thing that would change as he didn't have that need to be by himself anymore. He had friends now…really good ones. Ones he could count on no matter what and they were as close to a family as he ever had.

When he was young and his mother was still alive, that was the closest he had to a real family. At least she would make dinner most nights and he would have semi-clean clothes. When her drinking got out of control and she died in that fire, was when what little bit of a family they all were died too. His father's drinking and abuse skyrocketed and Merle was an out of control teenager, whose behavior followed him through his adult years.

Daryl saw normal families when he was a kid through his friends and had always wished for a family like that. As he grew older, his friends faded away because they didn't want to deal with his brother or his father. Everything just kept spiraling down as he got older, until he left home and never looked back.

His friends now, Rick, Glenn, Michonne, Maggie and the others were his family now and they gave him the emotional support and trust that he never had until he met Emma. They were the reason he survived losing her and he was a better man for knowing them. He was the man Emma deserved.

It was time for him make some big moves and this time he was going to go shopping for a ring …Glenn-style.


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39**

When everyone arrived back at Alexandria it was a joyful time. Only Rick and Daryl were wary of the possible retribution by the remaining Saviors, even though they felt it was only a small threat. Rick instructed the guards on watch to be extra diligent in keeping an eye out anything out of the ordinary. Rick wasn't leaving anything up to chance.

Maggie and Glenn made a run up to Hilltop for a follow up visit with the doctor. He told them he didn't see any reason why Maggie wouldn't be able to conceive again. She was a healthy young woman, but sometimes these things just happen.

There they learned that not one Savior had been by to pick up any supplies from that community. Together they spoke to Jesus and explained what had happened with the Saviors. They asked him not to say anything to anyone as it was not to be common knowledge that the Alexandrians were responsible. They trusted Jesus to keep their secret.

In the meantime, the supplies at Alexandria were on the rise. Maggie had replanted the garden and tiny sprouts were starting to come up. The pantry was decently stocked for the first time in a longtime. Everyone was eating well.

Daryl was assisting on many of these supply runs, but he made sure he was back each night. He didn't want to do anything overnight if he could help it. Each time he went out he checked the female walker's hands for rings and the houses they scavenged too. The living needed food, medicine, weapons and shelter. No one needed money or jewelry anymore.

He didn't want anything flashy as that wasn't Emma. When he was originally thinking buying her a ring, he had secretly tried one on that she would occasionally wear, and he knew where it should fit on his finger so he kept that in mind as he searched for the right ring.

He finally found it in a jewelry box that was stashed in the back of a drawer in an abandoned house they were searching. It was a wedding ring with three small diamonds on the band. It was just what he wanted. There was no need for an engagement ring like he had been paying off so he figured this band would cover both. It wasn't like they could really get married now anyway, but it was more of a way to pledge themselves to each other.

He wanted that commitment and it surprised him. He knew that good marriages did exist, he just had never seen any being raised by parents that barely tolerated each other. His only example of a good relationship that was lasting was Glenn and Maggie.

He had one more thing he wanted to do, but he needed to check with Rick first. Daryl hid the ring in the box of extra ammunition for his gun. He stored the box in a dresser drawer where he kept some clothes. He didn't think Emma would ever look in there. Since they only private space they had was the bedroom, his hiding spots were limited.

A few days after Daryl found the ring he went in search of Rick. He located him walking through the Monroe house.

"Hey Rick?" he called out.

"Back here," Rick answered. Daryl followed the voice into the library.

"What ya doing?"

"I think the threat from the Saviors is pretty much gone, what about you?" Rick asked not answering Daryl's question.

"Don't think we should lighten up on the watch posts, but yeah I think those pricks are done."

"I thought so too," Rick replied. He walked over to the window and looked outside for a second. "Spencer is moving out of the house and in with Rosita. I think I'm going to move Michonne and the kids here. It will give us more space and some privacy," Rick told him. "Spencer doesn't want to stay here any longer and I don't blame him, but it will work fine for us."

"That's exactly what I was looking to run by you. I got the same thing in mind for Emma and me. A place of our own and more privacy. Can I take #45, it's the smallest of the empty houses and we don't need more than that," Daryl asked.

"Of course. You want it…it's yours." Rick smiled at his friend. "Looks like we are both finally in a good place. A lot different than a few years ago."

"Hell yeah we are. I don't want to go back to that time. Fuck no," Daryl said. That was a bad time for him and he didn't want to have to go through that again. Having his own place with Emma was all he needed. "I'm gonna go check out the house while Emma's busy. Gonna surprise her."

"Who woulda thought you had a romantic side ," Rick teased.

Daryl turned and gave him one of his patented glares. All Rick did was laugh. "Happy for you, man."

A small smile appeared on Daryl's face. "Back at ya."

Daryl started walkout of the room, but turned back. "You know if you move in here, am I gonna have to call you Mayor Grimes?" Daryl ducked as Rick threw a paperback at him and laughed as Rick cursed him out of the room.

The inside of the unused house was in decent shape. It was barely dusty. There was a crew that would go through the unused houses on a monthly basis to keep them in good condition. They never knew when they would need to use one and it gave a job to several of the women. Daryl figured they must have been in there recently.

He stood back and looked at the house that he was about to move into. Even though he knew this was what he wanted more than anything else, his stomach still filled with butterflies. Daryl wanted to bring Emma here tonight after they ate, he didn't want to wait any longer.

Emma noticed that Daryl was quieter than normal at dinner that night. It was just Rick's family, Glenn, Maggie, Daryl and herself. This was the people he was most comfortable with, so she wondered what was bothering him. He wasn't a huge conversationalist by any means, but tonight she could tell something was in his mind.

Since she always cooked, the others did the clean-up, so once they finished eating she was free to do whatever she wanted. Typically after dinner was usually spent relaxing on the porch swing so Daryl could have a cigarette. Emma was going to ask him if he was okay.

When they went outside, Daryl lit the cigarette right away hoping it would calm his nerves. "Let's take a walk," he suggested.

"Sure," Emma agreed. " _What was he up to_?" she wondered as they started down the quiet street.

Neither said anything for a couple minutes, until Emma couldn't take it anymore. "You going to tell me what's going on here?" she asked.

"What ya mean?" Damn his nerves were making him act odder than normal. Why'd she have to pick up on that?

"Nuthin's going on Em. Can't I take a walk with you?" he told her trying to play it off as nothing.

"Yeah, sure," she replied rolling her eyes.

"Alright, I got sumthin' to show ya, so give me a break, okay?" He could see the house as just a little bit further. The enormity of what he was about to do slammed into him and he felt his palms start to sweat and the butterflies he had been fighting all day turned into somersaults in his stomach.

"Okay," she said smiling up at him. "Is this a surprise?"

"Damn it woman, would you stop messing this up!" he cried out frustrated. She knew him too well for him to try to put anything past her. "Just shut up and follow me."

Emma tried not to laugh at him as he pulled her towards one of the vacant houses. It had always been a favorite of hers. It was slightly smaller than the rest of them, which she liked. Never having grown up or ever lived in a house like these luxury ones inside Alexandria, Emma was always drawn to this one. The cheery yellow color always made her smile and she loved the front porch. If it had the swing like their house did it would be absolutely perfect.

Her curiosity got stronger and stronger as she realized Daryl was bringing her up the front steps. " _What was he up to_?" she wondered again as he opened the front door and they walked inside.

Daryl wondered if she noticed that his heart was trying to jump out of his chest it was beating so hard. Then his mind went completely blank. Everything he rehearsed that he wanted to say was gone. His mind had gone completely blank. Fuck! Now he was just going to have to wing it.

Emma looked around the living room and saw it was as nice as she had hoped. It was the exact type of home she had always dreamed of, but knew was completely out of her reach. Waitresses didn't live in places like this. "This has always been my favorite house in the community," she told him walking around the room touching everything.

"Really?" Daryl asked. This was better than he had anticipated.

"Yeah. Not too big, not too small and I love that front porch. Modern kitchen and while it's not as big as our house it's perfect."

"It's good that you like it cause…its ours." Daryl watched her reaction as his words hit her.

Emma immediately whipped around to face him. "Ours? Like just you and me… ours?" she asked her eyes wide with surprise.

"Yep, just you and me. That okay with you?"

Emma couldn't believe what he was telling her. This absolutely perfect house was theirs? "You mean we no longer live with everyone at the big house and it's really just you and me alone in this absolutely incredible house with no one else?"

Only now did Daryl know that she was happy. "Yeah, just you and me Em, the way it should have been years ago. Rick's moving out of the big house too, into the Monroe house and it's time we had our own place. I would never have been able to give you anything like this on a mechanics salary, but that don't matter no more. This is ours…if you want it."

"If I want it? Daryl, this is my perfect house! To live here with you is a dream come true." Emma twirled around the living room not believing what was happening.

Her own house. Her very own house with Daryl.

He saw her excitement and it thrilled him to make her this happy. They had both lost so much and been through so much, that he could do this for her was the best feeling ever. He had one more surprise for her and did the first thing he thought of, he dropped to one knee holding the ring out between two fingers.

Emma turned around and stopped when she saw him. Her eyes got wider and wider as she slowly walked over to him. "Be my wife Emma. I don't want you to ever doubt us. I know this ain't official, but I don't want anyone else."

Emma threw her arms around Daryl almost knocking him to the floor. "Oh my God. Are you serious? Really? We're really doing this?"

Daryl stood up still holding onto the ring. "Are you gonna say yes? You're killing me here."

"Of course!" Emma exclaimed. "Yes, yes and yes."

Daryl took her left hand in his and slid the ring onto her finger. "I love you Emma Raines. You're all mine now …forever."

Emma cocked her head and looked him right in the eye. "That's Emma Dixon and I've always been yours Daryl from the very first minute we met."

Daryl was the happiest he had ever been in his entire life. Nothing was better than this moment right then and there. He took Emma's face in his hands and leaned in to kiss her. All of his love and desire for Emma came through that kiss. It started out gentle like they did, then he pushed it stronger and Emma responded with equal fervor.

Lips were crushed together and tongues played a game of tag. They were both hungry for each other and within minutes kissing wasn't enough. Daryl broke away first. He took Emma by the hand and started walking towards the stairs.

"Where are we going?" she asked trying to catch her breath.

"To consummate this marriage." Daryl was ready to run up the stairs. He couldn't get her naked fast enough.

"Hot damn!"

* * *

The sun had set leaving Daryl and Emma in a soft darkness as they lay in each other's arms. A lone flickering candle on the dresser gave off minimal light. Emma had never felt this happy or this content in her whole life… until tonight. Daryl Dixon was the best thing that ever happened to her. Everything she had ever wanted was in this room. He was her whole life. Slowly Emma closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep dreaming of their new life together.

Daryl looked on the nightstand next to the bed. They still had three unused condoms lying there and he fully intended on using them all. He was only going to have one wedding night and he was going to make the most of it. Luckily for him, Emma was just was eager to get back to their old habits of having sex whenever and wherever they wanted. They still didn't know if she was pregnant from the night of unprotected sex they had. If she was, they would handle it together.

He considered himself lucky to ever have found her in the first place. Merle had done something right when he rented them that trailer next to hers. Emma was the most beautiful girl he had ever met and he couldn't believe that she had actually wanted him back then...Daryl 'Nobody' Dixon. He didn't deserve her, but once they got together he never wanted to let her go. Then she was gone…suddenly gone and ripped from his life. For years he simply survived, existing in a fucked up world that she wasn't in. It was nothing short of a miracle that they found each other again. Two of the worst people in his life, Merle and Negan, gave him Emma…not once, but twice. It may have taken years, but she was back in his arms for good.

He let her sleep for a while as the room was slowly bathed in darkness as the candle burned itself out. He was happy just to lay her with her wrapped in his arms for as long as she slept.

His wife, his house…his awesome life.

Daryl was finally a happy man.

 _ **The end.**_

* * *

 **A/N - Thank you everyone who have been faithfully reading Suddenly...GONE. This is my interpretation of what made Daryl the man he was early on in TWD. Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to drop be a comment/review. They are much appreciated.**

 **Shout out of thanks to -** I **nlovinfanfic, WalkingAddiction, I'm a Nerd & Proud, EastDensie, jeanf, missy7293, ks90, BeautifulDizastexDixon, Lorryltp, Heather, snowflaske2410 and Miss October 13**

 **My next story is a departure from TWD storyline. It's completely AU. You'll find Daryl (of course), Rick, Michonne and Merle in a tale of that happens when Daryl steps out of his comfort zone and takes a chance. Follow me to see all of my stories and look for 'Taking a Chance' on Sunday.**

 **Walker Witch**


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